Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Indiana for yielding me the time, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, it is good to be back on the House floor with the gentlewoman from Indiana. It is great to be with her, and so far, she is allowing me to actually speak and hasn't called for me to be silenced.

The last time we debated, I stated an uncomfortable fact about he who shall not be named and the gentlewoman had me silenced, had my words stricken from the Congressional Record.

You just have to love that, Mr. Speaker. The party of free speech that rails against woke this and cancel culture that, and calls us snowflakes, can't handle it when someone comes down here and tells the truth. They try to silence the people they disagree with. It is really quite stunning.

Here is more of the truth, and let's see if I am allowed to talk this time.

Mr. Speaker, under Republican control, the House of Representatives has become a place where trivial issues get debated passionately and important ones not at all. What we are dealing with today is a bunch of weird, whacky, poorly drafted culture war nonsense.

This is all just a waste of time. These bills aren't going anywhere. It is not even political theater. It is theater of the absurd.

The government shuts down in a few days, and instead of actually working with Democrats to keep the lights on, instead of actually doing something to fix the problems that the American people want us to fix, my Republican friends are doing nothing.

The roof is on fire, and instead of calling 911, they are sweeping the floors. I mean, it is beyond nuts.

Last night in the Rules Committee, during our hearing on this rule, I had some Republican Members telling me they didn't like my tone. They didn't like the fact that I said we don't share the same values.

I am sorry I hurt people's feelings, Mr. Speaker, but the truth is the truth. We don't all believe in the same things. When it comes to my friends on the other side of the aisle in this Chamber, we really don't share the same values. I know many of my friends on the Republican side are nice and good people, but their ideas are not nice and are not good.

Let me just give you a couple of examples.

Democrats want to make sure that our kids go to college and get a good education that prepares them for the workforce, and instead of working with us, Republicans go on and on about woke this and woke that in our schools.

Apparently, anyone who wants to teach facts is woke nowadays. They want colleges to stop being ``woke,'' even though they can't quite define what that even means. It is all political BS, Mr. Speaker.

Here is another example. Democrats actually want an economy that works for everyone, and thanks to the Biden-Harris administration, we are fighting to grow the economy from the bottom up and the middle out, but not Republicans. They are talking about woke economic policies.

I don't even know what they are talking about or what they mean, but do you want to know what people back home talk to me about? They are asking me: Why are Republicans trying to cut taxes for millionaires and billionaires? Why are Republicans trying to go after Social Security and Medicare?

Another example, Mr. Speaker, is that Democrats actually care about strengthening and protecting the Violence Against Women Act, but not Republicans. A majority of their Conference voted against extending the Violence Against Women Act. Let me say that again: A majority of their Conference voted against extending the Violence Against Women Act.

Now, they have the nerve to come down here and talk about violence against women and use it as part of their sick ploy to go after immigrants. Give me a break. Their bill is so poorly written that it could hurt survivors of domestic violence.

I could go right down the list. It is obvious to me that, at some point, the RNC talking points went out to everybody, and those talking points said woke, woke, woke. Now, we have to waste time on this trash.

It is just another week of the GOP circus. As I have said before, calling this a clown show is an insult to actual working clowns.

Most of all, it is an insult to the American people for Republicans to use these hallowed Halls and to spend hours and hours of time this week on these absurd, awful bills. Again, none of them are going anywhere.

The reason to be in Congress is to help people. That means putting people over politics. It means not caving in to the most extreme members of your party. It means getting stuff done, which is a radical idea.

None of these bills, as I said, are going anywhere. Yet, here we are, playing these absurd, ridiculous games.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed listening to the chairman of the Rules Committee, but let me just state for the record that nothing he talked about will be at all impacted by any of the stuff that we are talking about here today. None of these bills are going anywhere.

If you want to pass legislation to address some of the issues that were raised, maybe we ought to work in a bipartisan way. Maybe it ought not to be ``my way or the highway.''

These aren't serious pieces of legislation. These are press releases. Let's all be honest with the American people about that. This is not serious legislating. We haven't done serious legislating here in a long time.

Mr. Speaker, I will zoom in a little bit on this Congress in general. I just mentioned that this is the most dysfunctional Congress in history. If anyone wants proof, look no further than this resolution: five more closed rules that allow zero amendments to come to the floor.

Mr. Speaker, for folks who don't know, a closed rule means no amendments. It means: Take it or leave it. If you have a good idea and want to improve a bill, too bad.

This is how they govern in Russia and China, and that is what the Republicans are turning this place into.

With these five closed rules they are bringing to the floor today, Republicans are breaking their own record for shutting down debate. With today's vote, there will be 106 closed rules in this Congress-- 106. This is now officially the most closed Congress in the history of the United States of America.

Mr. Speaker, what gets me is that my friends on the other side have been totally fooled. They were tricked by their own leadership, first by Speaker McCarthy and now Speaker Johnson.

The gentlewoman from Indiana and her colleagues on the Rules Committee were promised a more open process. They were told the Rules Committee was going to be different, more open, would have more regular order and more amendments, and more debate.

Speaker McCarthy was even blackmailed into putting members of the Freedom Caucus on the Rules Committee to guarantee a more open process, but apparently, it didn't matter because he totally broke his promise, and now Speaker Johnson is shredding it.

During the first 9 months under Speaker Johnson, we saw 64 closed rules, even more than the 42 closed rules we saw under Speaker McCarthy. They traded a bad Speaker for an even worse one. Republican leaders have blocked 5,799 amendments from even coming to the floor. Mr. Speaker, 5,799 amendments have been blocked from coming to the floor by the Republican majority.

By the way, they are not just Democratic amendments. They blocked Republican, bipartisan, and Democratic amendments. They blocked an amendment to disrupt the smuggling of U.S. firearms across the Mexican border. They blocked an amendment to combat fentanyl trafficking at ports of entry.

Holy hell, Mr. Speaker, they even blocked my amendment to protect food for seniors who participate in the Meals on Wheels program. They have even blocked over half of their own Republican Members' amendments.

Let me say that again. Most Republican amendments have been blocked by this Congress. These amendments have been prevented from even seeing the light of day or getting a debate on the House floor. There have been 98 amendments that Rules Committee Republicans had either authored or supported that have been blocked by their own majority.

When you are on the Rules Committee, you like to have a little juice, but 98 of your amendments, Republican amendments, have been blocked by your own party. That is almost 100 amendments, and that is just Rules Republicans.

I am sure they would have loved to have had the opportunity to debate their amendments on the floor. If Rules Committee Republicans can't get amendments, how the hell do you think the rest of us are doing?

Republicans said they wanted an open process in this Congress. They want an open process, my foot, Mr. Speaker.

Under this majority, the Rules Committee has become a place where democracy goes to die. Their Members should be outraged with the Speaker and this leadership just as much as Democrats should be. Again, 106 completely closed rules blocked all amendments--a shameful statistic, an all-time authoritarian high set under this Republican majority.

Let's look at the results. Look at what they have to show for it. Republicans had the most unproductive Congress in the history of the United States of America.

Mr. Speaker, 26 days we went without a Speaker because they were fighting with each other. Weeks were wasted with failed rule votes while they argued among themselves instead of negotiating with Democrats.

There were broken promises on the appropriation process where they kicked the can down the road with another failed CR, bringing us to the brink of catastrophic debt default and then asking Democrats to bail them out. Mr. Speaker, 10 months of passing no legislation through the Rules Committee that ever became law.

I congratulate my friends. In addition to being the most incompetent, dysfunctional, unproductive Congress in American history, they now have also presided over the most closed Congress in American history. Well done, well done, and they are not done yet. We have to live through 3 more months of this. God help us.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, again, I reiterate what the gentleman from South Carolina just said. We have different viewpoints and different values.

I am sorry that he feels he lives in a wrecked country. I don't believe that. I think the United States of America is the greatest country on this planet, and I am proud to serve in Congress to try to help the people of this country. I would never refer to this country as a ``wrecked country.''

Again, the gentleman who just spoke, I thought when he was appointed to the Rules Committee, he was appointed to make sure that we had a more open process.

I regret to inform the gentleman that 106 closed rules slipped by him this Congress. I appreciate him standing in the breach.

By the way, when he refers to all the amendments that were rejected as being dumb, 50 percent of them were Republican amendments.

I think 27 of your amendments were denied. I wouldn't classify them as dumb, even though I may disagree with the intent.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record a list of the 106 closed rules issued by the Republican majority in the 118th Congress.

Mr. Speaker, beneath all these statistics about closed rules are actual ideas that are being blocked from being debated on the House floor.

These are thoughtful proposals that Members have worked hard to develop, ideas to help actual people, and they deserved a debate in an up-or-down vote.

They are proposals like this: An amendment to disrupt the smuggling of U.S. guns across the Mexico border to help cartels, an amendment authorizing funding for DHS to combat fentanyl trafficking at our ports of entry, and an amendment to prevent cuts to Meals on Wheels.

Those are home-delivered meals to seniors, Mr. Speaker, and that was my amendment, by the way, so I can assure you that it was a very, very good idea.

They even blocked an amendment to provide postpartum mental health information to pregnant students, and that was a Republican amendment.

Mr. Speaker, Republicans haven't just blocked amendments by reporting out closed rules. Their structured rules, the rules that allowed a few amendments, have also continually blocked thoughtful, rule-complied amendments.

They seem especially focused on blocking Democratic ideas from a debate in an up-or-down vote on the floor. A quarter of their structured rules--get this--blocked all Democratic amendments.

Now, let me quickly just list a few ideas that Republicans were either too afraid to debate or couldn't spare 10 minutes for consideration on the House floor: An amendment to protect children from getting asthma; amendments to ensure the regulation of dark money in politics, and to prevent corrupt pay-to-play political donation deals with Federal contractors; and an amendment to provide cancer screenings to Federal firefighters as part of their DOD annual physicals, when we know they are exposed to cancer-causing chemicals as part of their jobs. There is simply no excuse for this, Mr. Speaker.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, after listening to the gentlewoman from Minnesota, I was confused when she said, you don't offer alternatives. That is what amendments are. They are alternative ideas.

I just went through a list of some of the alternatives we wanted to offer dealing with firefighters and cancer screening, dealing with children with asthma, and dealing with making sure senior citizens have adequate access to nutrition. Those are alternatives. Those are ideas.

My friends, unfortunately, are in control of this place, so they get to bring the bills to the Rules Committee.

We try to present alternatives through the amendment process, but here is another alternative. If we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule to bring up H.R. 16, the American Dream and Promise Act of 2023.

Mr. Speaker, the bigoted hatred that we are seeing directed at immigrants in Ohio and across the country is sickening. According to research done by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, there has been a rise in conspiracy theories that stigmatize minorities and promote hatred of ethnically diverse communities.

Get this. Politicians' use of bigoted rhetoric can also play a role in hate crime incidents. It is sad, but to be frank, we didn't need researchers to tell us this.

We can see and we can hear it from the Republican Party every single day, and it does a grave disservice to the Dreamers, to TPS holders, and to DACA recipients in this country who only know America as their home.

These are taxpayers, small business owners, educators, and critical parts of our communities. Dreamers were brought to the United States as children through no fault of their own, and it is past time to grant them the pathway to citizenship that they rightly deserve.

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear. There is a lot of work that needs to be done to fix our broken immigration system and secure our border, but unlike the messaging bills before us this week, this is a bill that actually does something, and it is actually bipartisan. It sends the message that we are sick of the vitriol and hate crimes against this community and that we value their many contributions that make this country a better place.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record along with any extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Escobar), a great leader, to discuss our proposal.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia), who will also speak on the importance of defeating the previous question.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

You have got to love when Republicans try to talk tough about immigration reform. I just want to remind my colleagues that one of the most conservative Senators in the United States Senate is from Oklahoma. He wrote a comprehensive immigration reform bill that has some very tough provisions in it. Their standard-bearer, the man who I cannot name on the floor for fear that my words will be taken down, told Republicans to not allow it to come to the floor for debate or a vote.

They would rather have a campaign issue than to solve a problem. I mean, let that sink in. Let that sink in.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record an article from the National Institute of Justice titled: ``Undocumented Immigrant Offending Rate Lower Than U.S.-born Citizen Rate.''

Mr. Speaker, all day long, Republicans spout hateful rhetoric about undocumented immigration and crime because they want us to be scared and they want to divide us, but their claims are simply not rooted in truth. In fact, undocumented immigrants are less likely, not more, than U.S.-born citizens to commit crimes, including violent crime.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to include in the Record an article by the CATO Institute titled: ``Sanctuary Jurisdictions in Florida Do Not Have Higher Crime Rates.''

Mr. Speaker, there is no evidence, none, either in Florida or in the rest of the country that sanctuary cities result in more crime. There is none, zero. However, that won't matter to Republicans because they are unmoved by the facts.

Mr. Speaker, earlier I listed some examples of ideas that Republicans blocked from even being considered on the floor. Here are a few more. I just want people to appreciate this.

An amendment that would protect access to IVF for Federal employees, they blocked it.

They blocked an amendment to require a study for Tribal consultations before enactment of an oil and gas bill that could affect their subsistence resources.

An amendment to make critical targeted investments in small-town police departments for the recruitment, retention, mental health support, and training they need to protect themselves and their communities, they blocked that, too.

They blocked an amendment to ensure continued access to emergency care for pregnant servicewomen at military treatment facilities.

Maybe Republicans don't believe in IVF or any of these other ideas, but they can just vote ``no.'' Why block these ideas from even being debated unless they are afraid they would pass?

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am not prepared to close yet. There may be someone else.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I want to get back to this extraordinary closed House. I just want everybody to appreciate how awful this process is.

Here are yet more examples of ideas that were too scary, too revolutionary, too controversial to even be debated on the House floor, according to this Republican majority:

An amendment to provide grants to organizations that are helping to transition servicemembers to civilian life, including job recruitment training, they blocked that. I mean, what are they thinking? Who does that?

They blocked an amendment to ensure that students with dietary restrictions like lactose intolerance can have an alternative to whole milk at lunch. Is lactose intolerance now woke? I mean, I don't get it. That was blocked.

They blocked an amendment to ensure that a bill wouldn't cause our domestic energy prices to increase.

I ask, again, what is the majority afraid of? I mean, we have our differences. We ought to have substantive debate on the floor and then have votes. I am willing to bet there are some thoughtful Republicans who would support some of these amendments that I mentioned here.

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time I have remaining.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close.

We have heard a lot about wokeness here today, but I want to focus on the woke Democratic ideas that Republicans have blocked in this record- breaking closed Congress. I mean, ideas like protecting IVF, fighting fentanyl trafficking, and making sure lactose-intolerant students have something nutritious to drink at lunch. Wow. I mean, that those ideas are woke is crazy.

There have been 106 closed rules. That is a big number, a record- breaking number, but much more important is what that number represents. These ideas and all the other blocked amendments I highlighted would have helped everyday Americans. Is that woke? Is it woke to try and keep kids from getting asthma, to provide job training to veterans? To provide cancer screenings to firefighters, is that woke?

Mr. Speaker, I don't know what my Republican colleagues are afraid of. Maybe they are afraid to vote ``no.'' Maybe they are afraid to vote ``yes.'' This is Congress, Mr. Speaker. We are here to take hard votes. This record-breaking number of closed rules is a disservice to the people the Republicans represent.

Mr. Speaker, while Republicans want to talk about being woke, I wish instead that they would wake the hell up and do the people's business. For example, I don't know, maybe pass a bill to prevent a government shutdown. What we are doing today is merely a political exercise. Their obsession with trying to inject politics and culture wars into everything is getting really old, almost as old as the Presidential nominee.

Let me just say I love this place, and I love all the different things that we have been called on to do. I will just say this, Mr. Speaker: I want everybody to join with me and let's end this. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, the world is watching. It is time for Congress to act, and act we must.

America's allies have been waiting for this Republican majority to get their act together.

People are dying in Ukraine. Democracy is on the line in Ukraine, and this Republican majority has been twiddling their thumbs.

I am glad my friends have finally come to realize the gravity of the situation and the urgency of getting this aid to our allies.

What have Republicans done? Nothing. No action to help our allies. It is all delay, distract, deny, and blame Joe Biden.

Ukrainians are fighting for democracy--theirs and ours--and they have been set back as a result of Republican extremism. They have suffered because of Republican inaction.

I will remind my friends that Ukrainians didn't choose this war. It chose them.

Two years ago, when Putin illegally crossed the border and invaded, he was banking on the United States and our allies growing weary. He was hoping we would give up. He was hoping we would do nothing. He was betting we would abandon our friends and our internal divisions would leave us in disarray, at odds with one another.

I hope Putin is wrong, Mr. Speaker, because after 2 years of unrelenting war, Ukrainians are still willing to hold the line.

I visited Ukraine with former Speaker Pelosi shortly after Putin attacked them, and we learned about the particularly cruel nature in which Putin has been fighting this war. If you care about human rights, you have to care about what is happening in Ukraine. That is what this is all about.

Ukrainians are still ready to defend their democracy, but they cannot continue to do so without our support.

I won't sugarcoat it here. Ukraine's defense of democracy has suffered because there is a faction here in this House, a MAGA minority, that doesn't want to compromise. They don't want to take this vote because they are afraid of what the outcome might be--not that it will fail, but that it will succeed.

That argument might hold sway in the Kremlin, Mr. Speaker, but this is the United States. We are the people's House, an institution designed to reflect the will of the majority.

Today, the majority's voice is being heard here on the House floor-- not a majority of one State, one party, or one faction, but a majority that wants to help Ukraine hold the line, a majority that says bring these bills to the floor for an up-or-down vote.

Democrats are providing the votes necessary to advance this legislation to the floor because, at the end of the day, so much more is at stake here than petty partisan brinkmanship.

Putin is looking to rebuild the Soviet Union, and mark my words, he will not stop at Ukraine. Anybody who thinks that is delusional.

If the world doesn't help them defend their democracy, this war will not end. It will grow.

Mr. Speaker, I don't agree with everything in this package. I have deep, deep problems about the unconditional aid to Israel. I was among the first calling for a cease-fire, and I still call for a cease-fire. I have demanded more humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza, and I will continue to do so. I have called for a two-state solution. I believe Prime Minister Netanyahu is putting Israel on a path that, quite frankly, undermines his own country's security. I am outraged by his cruelty and inhumanity toward the people of Gaza and the West Bank.

There is no justification for that. There is none. Israel has a right to defend itself--nobody questions that--but what is happening now, I believe, is outrageous and unconscionable.

We will have separate debates, and we will have separate votes on all of these bills, and people can decide where they want to be.

Quite frankly, some Republicans wanted a different path. They wanted to extort this rule for a campaign ad on border security for Donald Trump. We almost had no Ukraine aid because that is what some of my Republican friends wanted and advocated for. They advocated for a bill with no humanitarian aid for anybody who is suffering--not just in Gaza, but also in Ukraine and other parts of the world--and they wanted all this kind of ugly border security language attached to this measure.

There is a lot at stake at this moment, and we are all supposed to be grownups. We should act like it. Let's proceed in a way that allows everyone to vote their conscience.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett), a champion for human rights.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Leger Fernandez), a valued member of the Rules Committee.

Wow, Mr. Speaker, I guess the gentleman from Texas is unaware of the fact that there was a bipartisan border security deal that was agreed to that, unfortunately, House Republicans and Trump decided to kill.

I ask unanimous consent to insert in the Record an Axios article titled: ``Trump, House Republicans plot to kill border deal.''

Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I yield myself the balance of my time to do so.

Mr. Speaker, the Democrats have had to make some tough decisions about how to vote on this rule, and let me tell you why I voted to support it last night. I have disagreements with many aspects of the various pieces of legislation that will come before us, and there are some of these pieces that I will vote against.

Again, there will be separate votes, and there will be separate debates, but as we learned last night in the Rules Committee, the alternative that some of my Republican friends were pushing to this approach was an Israel-only package with no humanitarian aid, not just for the people of Gaza, but for any suffering people that the aid would benefit and some really ugly border provisions, which I found unconscionable and some other bad stuff as well.

Democrats, once again, will be the adults in the room, and I am so glad Republicans finally realized the gravity of the situation and the urgency with which we must act. But guess what, Mr. Speaker? You don't get an award around here for simply doing your damn job. President Biden told us last year, 6 months ago--over 6 months ago--that this was urgent and important, that Ukraine needed us, that Putin was not going to stop, that the war against Ukrainians was particularly vicious. Every major human rights organization in the world has told us the impact of Russia's attack against Ukraine.

The Senate voted months ago. The Senate can barely agree on what to have for lunch, and they voted months ago. What did the House do? What did my House Republican friends do? They did nothing. There was no action to help our allies. It is all delay, distract, deny and blame Joe Biden. I would just say to my colleagues, look at what MAGA extremism has gotten you; nothing. It has gotten you nothing, not a damn thing.

In fact, it has empowered Democrats. At every critical juncture in this Congress, it has been Democrats who have been the ones to stand up for our country and do the right thing for the American people. Democrats ensured the U.S. didn't default on its debt last year in case anybody forgot. Democrats supplied votes to keep the government running in September of last year, in November of last year, and in March of this year. Democrats supplied the votes to pass the National Defense Authorization Act. Democrats supplied the votes for the tax relief bill that passed earlier this year. Democrats have done the job that Republicans have refused to do.

Again, we have different priorities, and I think, based on what I have heard in this last Congress, different values. We don't even agree on a lot of what has come before the full House. Democrats have done the job that Republicans have refused to do. We don't want an award for it. We don't want a trophy for showing up to work. All we want is for Republicans to do their job, stop blaming Joe Biden for their own incompetence, and work with our side to find common ground. We are in a divided government. A Democrat is President, we have a Democratic controlled Senate, and we have a narrow Republican majority in the House. Nobody is going to get everything they want. We have to work together. We have to compromise.

I hope today's vote loosens the grip that MAGA extremism has on this body, and especially when it comes to supporting our allies. You know, the Rules Committee is the committee that has been known as the traffic cop of Congress. Every bill of consequence comes through the Rules Committee. I mean, we set the bills for debate on the House floor.

The last bill that the Rules Committee reported that actually became law was almost 10 months ago. All the other bills that we have sent that made it over to the White House and become law had to be brought up under different processes and procedures. I mean, let that sink in. Something is not working here. You either want to be a body that is constructive and that gets stuff done, or you just want to be a party that just obstructs everything and gets nothing done, because at the end of the day, there is nothing to show for all the yelling and screaming and finger-pointing that we see on a regular basis on this House floor.

My friends have to choose. History is going to judge them by how they answer one simple question: Are they going to work together with Democrats; in this case, stand with our allies and stand for America, or are they gonna throw in their lot with MAGA Trump and Putin? We are living in very uncertain times, Mr. Speaker, and people around the world are counting on this country to stand up and lead.

People in Ukraine, people in Taiwan, people in Gaza, people in Israel--you know, the eyes of the world are on this body. There are a lot of things in this package I disagree with. And in my opening statement, I talked about my concern about the unconcerned aid package to Israel. My concern is that Netanyahu's government is not moving in a direction that, quite frankly, is a direction that I think will lead to more security for Israel; it is exactly the opposite. I worry that what he is doing is, quite frankly, a violation of the human rights of so many innocent people in Gaza and in the West Bank.

I was hoping that they would pursue a different pathway. Instead, we now hear that he wants to go into Rafah. There is a famine happening in Gaza. People are starving to death. Aid is being frustrated from getting there, food medicine, important supplies. People are dying. Surely we should all care about that. We should be able to advocate for Israel's security but also advocate for the people of Gaza, children of Gaza, senior citizens. People are just trying to get on with their lives.

Notwithstanding the fact that we may have disagreements--and some of my Republican friends obviously disagree whether we should be helping Ukraine or not. I disagree with you, fine, but we have a process that you will be able to vote on all of these things separately, and you will be able to make your views clear. I have got to tell you, you know, you don't have to

agree on everything to agree on something. We ought to agree that these issues are important enough to debate and to have up or down votes on.

The people who are advocating that we do nothing, you know, or that we--you know, that we attach things to this bill that will guarantee that it goes nowhere in the Senate, and therefore, we help nobody, I don't understand why you are even here quite frankly. We need to move this process forward.

The House has to function. As we have seen, under Republican control, that only happens when Democrats are the adults in the room. I say that not to be partisan. I say that because that is what has been happening. I gave you a list of things that needed to be done, you know, not just in terms of helping our allies, but in terms of saving our economy, that could not have been done unless Democrats stood up and behaved like adults.

Mr. Speaker, this should have been dealt with a long time ago, months ago, but here we are. Here we are.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that as we proceed, we have rational and thoughtful debate, knowing that we will have disagreements and knowing that some of us will have different ideas on how we should proceed forward.

This is the United States House of Representatives. We are supposed to debate issues. We are supposed to vote on things. Unfortunately, this has become a place where trivial issues get debated passionately and important ones not at all.

Well, these are important issues that are in this bill. Some of them I agree with; some of them I don't agree with. Let's debate them, let's vote on them, and then let's move on.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.

General Leave

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, last night, the Rules Committee met and produced a rule, H. Res. 1455, providing for the House's consideration of seven pieces of legislation.

First, the rule provides for H.R. 3724, the End Woke Higher Education Act, to be considered under a structured rule.

Second, the rule provides for H.R. 4790, the Prioritizing Economic Growth Over Woke Policies Act, under a closed rule.

Third, the rule provides for H.R. 5339, the Protecting Americans' Investments from Woke Policies Act, under a closed rule.

Fourth, the rule provides for H.R. 5179, the Anti-BDS Labeling Act, under a closed rule.

The rule provides for H.R. 7909, the Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act, and H.R. 5717, the No Bailouts for Sanctuary Cities Act.

Mr. Speaker, I support this rule and the underlying legislation, beginning with H.R. 3724, the End Woke Higher Education Act.

As a Member of the Education and the Workforce Committee, we have spent countless hours addressing the serious issues within higher education under the Biden administration, where activism is often prioritized and differing viewpoints are silenced.

These conversations have become increasingly necessary, as we have seen waves of anti-Semitic protests where students are supporting terrorist organizations, and these protests are sweeping the Nation.

Too many institutions of higher education have cowered to the mob of protesters, often compromising the safety and well-being of their students. Freedom of speech is under attack on our campuses nationwide, and it is our students who are paying the price.

This mindset weakens what has historically been the strength of America: free-flowing and open debate at our institutions of learning. We must not let campus activists, woke faculty, and partisan administrators turn post-secondary education into DEI indoctrination camps. Denying speech undermines the very fabric of the Nation and is against everything our Founders intended.

Mr. Speaker, I am glad this legislation includes my Students Bill of Rights Act of 2024, which aims to address the erosion of First Amendment rights faced by students, and provides protections for academic freedom and expression.

Our students should never feel afraid to express their point of view or fear retribution or negative consequences for their future.

This woke mind virus doesn't stop there, which brings me to H.R. 5339, the Protecting American Investments from Woke Policies Act. It protects the retirement savings of workers, retirees, and their families by rolling back woke ESG requirements that have nothing to do with the bottom line.

The bill ensures that financial institutions are focused on maximizing returns in retirement plans rather than advancing the Biden- Harris administration's radical agenda at the expense of American workers. Forcing often underperforming and relatively high-risk investments on our seniors is not what they are asking us to do in this Chamber.

In this spirit, I am glad the bill includes one of my pieces of legislation, the Retirement Proxy Protection Act. The bill ensures that fiduciaries prioritize economic interests of plan beneficiaries when voting on shareholder proposals.

Finally, the rule also provides for consideration of H.R. 4790, a comprehensive bill package targeting unelected bureaucrats.

Time and time again, this administration has prioritized, again, an ESG agenda and initiatives that are against the well-being of workers and American businesses.

Democrat-appointed bureaucrats are attempting to use regulation to create climate and social policy in our financial markets, ultimately raising costs and limiting growth.

This legislation aims to stop unnecessary political reporting requirements for companies, make Federal regulators more transparent, and reduce the SEC's power over shareholders.

I am proud that another one of my bills, the No Expensive, Stifling Governance Act, or No ESG Act, is included as part of this package.

I will also touch on a bill brought forward by the gentleman from New York (Mr. LaLota), my friend, H.R. 5717, the No Bailout for Sanctuary Cities Act.

I am proud to be a cosponsor of this bill. Despite the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 clearly stating that no restrictions can be placed on communication between local or State authorities and Federal immigration officials about someone's immigration status, many cities still choose not to comply.

We have known for years that sanctuary cities create incredible challenges for Federal law enforcement, and in doing so, public safety is endangered.

Let's take Aurora, Colorado, for example. They are experiencing unprecedented gang violence due to a neighboring sanctuary city.

We also know that the Biden-Harris administration has been a master class in how to not handle border security. This administration has totally failed, alongside the sanctuary cities, in enforcing our immigration laws because the crime that finds a home in a sanctuary city spreads to other jurisdictions.

If sanctuary cities choose to operate this way and endanger their own communities, neighboring communities, and, ultimately, the entire Nation, then they must be forced to balance their irresponsible choices with the loss of other Federal support. It is pretty simple: If you fail to comply with the law, you should not expect support.

Our constituents understand and also demand that their tax dollars not support sanctuary cities that actively undermine their public safety and our immigration law.

The rule also provides for consideration of H.J. Res. 136 to push back on EPA overregulation, H.R. 5179 to end anti-Israel boycotts, and H.R. 7909, the Violence Against Women Act, which would crack down on crime caused by the Biden-Harris administration's open-border policies.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to consideration of these important bills, and I urge the passage of this rule.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess), my colleague and the chair of the Rules Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I note that what my colleague, the ranking member, does not note is that this House has passed under Republican leadership more than 300 bills out of the House of Representatives with 92 percent bipartisan support. Many of these bills go to the Democrat- controlled Senate where they die.

The ranking member also likes to criticize this majority when he knows full well just last Congress when he was chair, the Rules Committee was no bastion of an open process.

For the record, here are some statistics that might help paint a better picture and provide context for the cherry-picked numbers the Member rattled off.

It is true there have been more closed rules, but this majority has reported nearly twice the amount of bills in the last Congress. Considered as a percentage, this majority has reported fewer closed rules than when he had the gavel.

Even more, over a third of the closed rules were because no amendments

were offered, making the rule closed by definition.

Not considering those closed rules brings us still at roughly the same rate as a percentage of closed rules from the last Congress but with significantly more bills offered.

I also remind this body that the previous Congress saw the use and abuse of partisan en bloc amendment votes, which created omnibus-style amendments designed to defeat Republican, or tough amendments, and had the practical effect of stifling the Republican minority.

Even with this procedural atrocity, the ranking member still can't claim a higher ground on making minority amendments in order.

We also needed to keep up with the onslaught of regulations from the Biden-Harris administration that they have unleashed on the American people from unelected bureaucrats.

We have considered numerous disapproval resolutions, which traditionally are carried closed because of how they are written. The ranking member carried on this tradition when he had the gavel.

While the ranking member wants to talk about how we are stifling Democrat amendments, this majority has actually made more minority amendments in order as a percentage than the previous Congress when he was calling the shots.

While the ranking member shakes his finger at the majority for the way this Congress has gone, I point out that he understands the unique difficulties and the tough decisions the Rules Committee is tasked with in moving the majority's agenda.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to my colleague from South Carolina (Mr. Norman).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Mrs. Fischbach).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

The other side of the aisle won't even deport violent criminals. That is against the very safety of American citizens. In New York City, under Bill de Blasio, they passed a series of sanctuary city policies between 2014 and 2018 that prohibit the New York Police Department and correction and probation departments from cooperating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents except under very limited circumstances.

However, now, more than 100,000 migrants have passed through New York City since the spring of 2022, and 58,000 still remain in the city's care. Current Mayor Eric Adams and the Governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, have said: ``We don't have capacity.''

For years, ICE has warned that sanctuary cities create a public safety threat, and they are one of the biggest impediments to public safety efforts. However, under the Biden and Harris administration, the crisis at the southern border has only worsened the consequences of sanctuary policies and made enforcing current immigration laws even more difficult.

H.R. 5717, despite mischaracterizations from my friends on the other side of the aisle, creates an incentive for local jurisdictions to cooperate with Federal immigration officials by prohibiting Federal funds from being used to provide sanctuary for illegal aliens going to sanctuary jurisdictions. Under current law, it creates a perverse incentive for sanctuary cities to willingly flout the law.

H.R. 5717 holds sanctuary cities accountable for exacerbating the Biden-Harris border crisis and flouting Federal immigration law by prohibiting the use of taxpayer dollars to fund housing, healthcare costs, and other benefits for illegal immigrants in such municipalities.

Taxpayers who are at risk due to the border crisis should not be funding local governments not interested in upholding the rule of law. No Bailout for Sanctuary Cities corrects these perverse incentives and ensures that taxpayers are not on the hook for this lawlessness.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to inquire if the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) is prepared to close.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Despite what my colleagues on the left have to say, the American people know that the Biden-Harris administration has been a relentless, woke assault on the American economy, the education system, and even Americans' retirement accounts.

The American people know the Biden-Harris administration has resulted in crippling inflation, a wide-open border, decreasing public safety, and increasing drug overdose deaths.

With the bills before us today, we continue to deliver for the American people. House Republicans are fighting at every turn to secure our borders, restore our economy, and protect free speech and free markets.

The Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act and the No Bailout for Sanctuary Cities Act are commonsense bills that would immediately make our communities safer, something the Biden-Harris administration has repeatedly failed to do. I would hope that our colleagues on both sides of the aisle would support these important bills.

I look forward to moving these bills out of the House this week, and I ask my colleagues to join me in voting ``yes'' on the previous question and ``yes'' on the rule.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 1160 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.

General Leave

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, late last night, the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 1160, providing for consideration of four measures: H.R. 8034, the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, under a closed rule; H.R. 8036, the Indo-Pacific Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, under a structured rule; H.R. 8035, the Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024, under a structured rule; and H.R. 8038, the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act, under a structured rule.

The rule further provides that after the House's consideration of these measures, the Senate will be quickly able to move to consideration of the legislation that we pass.

Mr. Speaker, today, it is important that we support the underlying rule and the underlying legislation. Specifically, I rise in support of our allies after the attack on Israel by Iran 10 days ago. That unprecedented attack has reaffirmed the need for strong American leadership and support for our allies abroad, especially Israel and now our allies in the Indo-Pacific.

I am well aware there have been concerns in our Conference and really on both sides of the House about the southern border and national debt.

As a Member from Texas, as a member of the Budget Committee, I fully understand these concerns and share all of them, but the requirement for America to insert itself as the leader of the free world is not optional. It is not a requirement we can put on pause.

Israel has been attacked. China talks menacingly about reunification with Taiwan. Ukraine is in crisis and is in need of our help to survive Russian aggression.

Now, I would say to the President that this legislation on the floor today perhaps could have been facilitated by some leadership from the executive branch, but despite the circumstances that brought us here, we stand before the House to support our allies and reaffirm America's leadership on the world stage.

H.R. 8034, the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, will provide much-needed material support to the Jewish state as it faces twin threats from Hamas and the Islamic Republic of Iran. This includes $4 billion to replenish Israel's Iron Dome and over a billion dollars for the Iron Beam defense system.

H.R. 8036, the Indo-Pacific Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024, will work to counter the Chinese Communist Party and create a strong deterrence in the region.

H.R. 8035, the Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, will assist Ukraine as they counter Russian aggression.

Of the latter, all financial assistance to the Ukrainian Government is converted into a loan, ensuring that the Ukrainian Government is held accountable to the American people.

Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt that our failure in Afghanistan was the spark in the tinderbox that led to the subsequent invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

That conflict had been smoldering for a long time, certainly at least since 2014 and two previous administrations. Had the administration in 2014, as well as the current administration, had more foresight to provide aid and arms to Ukraine before February 2022, there might have been a different set of circumstances that we were contemplating today, and there might have been a more swift resolution to this conflict, with the saving of untold lives.

Mr. Speaker, I stand with my colleagues requesting more information from the administration. The American people deserve answers about how previous funding has been used. They deserve answers about what the long-term goals by the administration are to resolve this conflict.

I welcome more oversight. I welcome additional information from the administration and will continue to push its accountability. Today, we are at an inflection point, and the longer we wait, the more expensive any solution to this conflict will become, both in terms of dollars and lives.

Lack of aid now could cost us much more dearly later, and I don't want that to become a reality. I would hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle feel the same.

Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of the rule. I urge passage of the underlying legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole), the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Massie), a valuable member of the Committee on Rules.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy), another valuable member of the Rules Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Barr) from the Financial Services Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Kentucky.

Mr. Speaker, I would just ask if the gentleman from Massachusetts has additional speakers. If not, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, our adversaries, notably Russia, China, and Iran, are watching to see how we will respond. Our reaction to these crises will determine how they will choose to proceed. An important difference between this package of bills today and the previously passed Senate supplemental is the addition of the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act. The legislation is important as it includes sanctions and policies that counter our adversaries through the inclusion of the REPO Act, the removal of our payment for foreign pensions, and requiring the administration to provide a game plan in Ukraine, something that many of us have been asking for, for some time.

Ronald Reagan told us peace comes through strength. By failing to act now, it will signal the opposite of strength. It will invite future aggression, as failure to act has done so often in the past.

Mr. Speaker, I also feel obligated to point out that this Congress has had two votes on providing aid to Israel. One occurred in October, right after Speaker Johnson was elected. Indeed, it was one of his highest priorities. I thought that aid package was responsibly offset through cuts to other Federal agencies here. Senator Schumer didn't see it that way and said we have never conditioned aid to Israel with anything, so there can be no offset, that it can't be paid for.

In the House, in February of this year, I think it was Mr. Calvert of California who introduced a bill to provide the same aid to Israel without the offset. It was blocked, this time by people on my side.

The Speaker said, okay, let's bring it up under suspension, and maybe we can get agreement between Members on both sides. In fact, under suspension, the two-thirds majority required was not achieved, so that bill failed in February, as well.

Had any one of those bills passed, we might not be here today because we all know 1 week--10 days ago--Iran attacked Israel, the missiles and drones originating from Iranian soil, the first time that has ever happened, and the crisis advanced.

Yes, we did have an opportunity to provide that aid to Israel. It might not have been what my friend from Massachusetts would have wanted, but at the same time, we had the opportunity to provide that.

Unfortunately, now, even members of my committee are upset with where we are today, but we had the opportunity to sort of head off all of this by simply passing that aid package last February, and we wouldn't do it.

What happens if we don't do this today? Does it get better or worse for us down the road? Nobody knows the answer to that, but history tells us it is very likely to get worse.

We have two votes now, Mr. Speaker, on Israeli aid. On both counts, I think most of us in this body want to see that pass.

I will stress again that weakness invites aggression, and we cannot allow our allies in the Middle East, the Indo-Pacific, and Ukraine to be abandoned. By doing so, we will not prevent future aggression but will invite it.

Today, we have an opportunity to deliver critical aid to our allies, and I believe it is appropriate to do so.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

The previous question was ordered.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1160, I call up the bill (H.R. 8034) making emergency supplemental appropriations to respond to the situation in Israel and for related expenses for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2024, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer H.R. 8034, the Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024.

This bill provides $26.38 billion to fortify America's support of Israeli allies and defend our troops in the region.

It is part of a larger package of three security supplemental appropriations acts before us for Israel, Ukraine, and the Indo- Pacific. All three are essential to deter our adversaries.

There are moments when our actions are optional, a convenience but not a necessity, a choice. This is not one of those moments.

The world is in chaos. Americans have been killed, and our allies and partners are dying on the front lines every day.

Ukraine is entering its third year of a war to repel Russia's invasion while forced to conserve their munitions and choose which areas to defend. Israel is avenging its innocent civilians who were murdered, raped, brutalized, and taken hostage by Hamas while defending its country from a barrage of Iranian missiles. Indo-Pacific nations face China daily with strength and resolve, knowing they are likely next.

The United States is not on the sidelines in these conflicts. Our servicemembers are under daily attack in the Red Sea, standing watch along NATO's eastern flank and being routinely challenged in the Indo- Pacific. Mr. Speaker, five American flag-draped coffins have returned home in the past 6 months.

When we go to war, we go to war with what we have. There is no time to forge new alliances, no ability to reconstruct abandoned production lines, and no hidden reserve of fully trained and ready troops.

This is the situation our allies and partners in Israel, Ukraine, Taiwan, and other Indo-Pacific nations face today. It is a situation we ourselves may face sooner than we think.

Xi, Putin, Khamenei, and terrorist leaders will not back down unless met with a strong and resolute America, standing shoulder to shoulder with our constellation of allies and partners. These bills provide the funding necessary to defeat and deter our enemies.

While the bills carry the names of other countries, there is one Nation that I care about above all others. That is ours. These conflicts have exposed the fragility of our defense industrial base and the dire need to invest in factories, shipyards, and assembly lines that manufacture the instruments of our national defense.

In recognition of this fact, over $59 billion across these bills go into our defense industrial base, including $3.3 billion to supercharge our submarine industrial base; $29.5 billion to replenish our stocks of U.S. defense systems and services provided to Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan; and $1.13 billion to expand procurement and development of artillery and critical munitions.

Each conflict has its unique needs addressed in these bills, including: $5.2 billion to replenish Israel's Iron Dome and David's Sling and procure Iron Beam missile defense systems; $542 million for unfunded priorities expressly requested by the USINDOPACOM commander; and $13.8 billion directly to procure U.S. capabilities for Ukraine.

Our servicemen and servicewomen across the globe are being tasked to operate at a wartime tempo to track, respond, and engage emerging threats. These bills provide the resources necessary to support their operations with $11.3 billion for current U.S. operations in Europe and $2.4 billion for our forces in the Middle East who are under daily attack.

Mr. Speaker, we have been complacent far too long as our allies and partners and our own servicemembers have been under attack. This Congress has a solemn obligation to our military to provide them with the resources they need to deter and win our Nation's wars.

Douglas MacArthur once said: ``The history of the failure of war can almost be summed up in two words: too late.''

When conflict occurs, we will fight with what we have and who is with us.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on these bills to ensure our military readiness and reinvigorate the American defense industry.

I encourage them to vote ``yes'' to reinforce our Israeli, Ukrainian, Taiwanese, and Indo-Pacific allies and partners.

I encourage them to vote ``yes'' so that future generations may write of what we did here today: They weren't too late.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Clyde), a member of the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Lawler).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Kean).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson).

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time is remaining.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, this is a day we are going to act. I urge all my colleagues to support these critical national security bills. They provide the resources necessary to bolster our military, reassure our allies and partners, and commit to stand against tyranny.

The world is waiting, watching, and wanting America to lead. This is our moment.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.