Gulf of America Act

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

Mr. Speaker, as much as it pains me to say this, we are here on the House floor today because the House Republican majority has chosen to prioritize debate and passage of a bill to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. That is not what my constituents think is the most important thing Congress should tackle this week or this year, and I bet it is not what your constituents think either.

It is easy to mock this legislation because it is so inane and embarrassing, and we have, but its very existence and the fact that House Republicans have chosen to waste time and taxpayer dollars to bring it up for a vote, is worth considering.

Let's talk about the real gulf of America--the gulf in America--the gulf between the ambitions and priorities of this White House, aided and abetted by the House majority, and the needs of the American people.

That is the gulf that makes Republicans think that it is more important to give tax cuts to billionaires than to make sure that America's children, veterans, and seniors have food, housing, and medical services, and that we protect the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat.

It is the gulf that causes the Speaker to bring ridiculous legislation to the floor to flatter the President and appease his base rather than meet the needs of the American people.

Americans want a Congress and a White House that solves problems rather than creates them. Americans aren't asking to rename the Gulf of Mexico. In fact, public polling, including on FOX, says that nearly 70 percent of Americans oppose that executive order and this legislation to rename the Gulf of Mexico.

Like many Americans, I follow the news each day with trepidation. Many folks tell me that the chaos and missteps of this administration are too painful or upsetting to follow. They have tuned it out because the only guarantee we have is that every day the President or his administration will have done something dumber or more dangerous than the day before.

Each day brings its own self-inflicted crisis with this White House, and millions of Americans are exhausted by it. They are pleading with their elected officials to act, to do something, anything, to bring normalcy back to this country, to bring decency back to this country.

There was a time when American public life was guided by a genuine sense of duty and a converse fear of shame, but today neither appear to hold much sway.

Instead, we have a White House filled with charlatans, con men, snake oil salesmen, grifters, billionaires, and criminals, all using the power of the Federal Government to enrich themselves at the expense of the American

people and to punish their political opponents.

Last week was President Trump's 100th day in office, a customary benchmark by which we measure the successes and failures of a new President's term. I think it is safe to say that Trump's first 100 days have been a disaster. His tariff policies are likely to cause a recession. Millions of people have seen their retirement savings evaporate. Families don't know if they are going to be able to afford basic goods, much less Christmas dolls. Businesses, big and small, are paralyzed by uncertainty and reducing their spending, and many small businesses may not survive.

To add insult to injury, when faced with these facts, the President says: Deal with it. Those are the President's own words. The tariffs will be painful, but it is a price that must be paid; but paid by whom? It won't be Trump or the billionaires in his Cabinet or at his golf clubs. No, it is going to be real people, people who work for a living, who will have to pay the price for his ill-conceived trade war. It is not going to be guys like Bessent and Lutnick, who have multimillion- dollar mansions and fly on private planes. They will be just fine.

However, for working parents, according to Trump, maybe the kids will have 2 dolls instead of 30. I don't know who has 30 dolls. Maybe the moms who live in my district will have to pay more for the stroller they use to transport their kids to daycare and doctors and the grocery store. So much for the guy who said he was going to bring down prices on day one.

It is worth noting that just yesterday in our Rules markup, our Republican colleagues voted, once again, to keep the Trump tariffs in place. Over a month ago, they rigged the rules of the House to prevent Congress from voting to end the Trump tariffs. They literally voted to stop time, to say that for the purposes of protecting the Trump tariffs, there is only one day between now and the end of September in order to prevent anyone from being able to force a vote on whether to end Trump's tariffs. They are dragging down our economy and American families with it.

That is just the terrible Trump tariffs. In these first 100 days, the administration has cut services at Social Security, fired medical staff at VA hospitals, and withheld aid to food banks, children's health programs, and community violence prevention efforts. They have waged a political war against universities and scientific research, and illegally froze over $400 billion in congressionally appropriated funds, including billions of dollars to FEMA, to everyone from local firefighters to States that have been affected by natural disasters.

This White House has issued hundreds of controversial executive orders, many of which courts have deemed illegal or unconstitutional. Every day this administration is disappearing hundreds of people, sending them to faraway detention centers without any due process, due process that would expose mistakes and lies about some people who are not criminals and, in some cases, are even citizens and, therefore, should not be deported.

The damage that is being caused right now by this administration to our communities, to our international standing, to our national security and national fabric, will take years to unwind. Eager to do their part and contribute to the chaos, House Republicans continue to find novel ways to bring this Chamber to new lows.

This week, Republicans are putting forward two bills, one that is pretty much a redundant effort to counter Confucius Institutes and another to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

The second bill may be the dumbest bill brought to the floor during the 6 years I have served in Congress. With all of the important work this Congress should be tackling, the Speaker and House Republicans have chosen to indulge the President in a whim that the American public does not support.

Frankly, if I had to vote on a bill like this, I would find it deeply embarrassing. I know my Republican colleagues are smart people. They are not dumb, so I have to think that they share this embarrassment, unless they are members of a cult, a cult of personality based around a dear leader who they are required to obey or risk retribution, and upon whom they bestow endless compliments and praise in order to seek personal favors.

It doesn't matter how much damage he causes, how much money he wastes, how many lives and families he hurts. It doesn't matter if he causes a recession. It doesn't matter if he encourages influence peddling and grift with a Trump coin, or his Gulf of America merch, or if he gives insider stock tips before taking executive action. House Republicans seem to always do what Trump says.

If he wants to do something as dumb as rename the Gulf of Mexico, Republicans apparently will fall in line. We will watch them twist themselves into pretzels to come up with increasingly convoluted rationales for the President's actions. Today will surely be a master class in delusion.

Further adding to the chaos, this month, House Republicans are expected to finish drafting the text of the reconciliation bill through which they are planning to cut healthcare benefits to seniors, children, and people with disabilities and cut nutrition assistance to the poor in order to pay for a huge tax giveaway to billionaires and big business.

Despite more than 40 years of empirical evidence showing that Republican trickle-down economics are a resounding failure, Republicans are nonetheless pushing ahead with their party orthodoxy. We have more than enough evidence that trickle-down economics does not work. It doesn't help the middle class. It doesn't create jobs. It doesn't increase business investment, and it doesn't grow the economy.

What these policies actually do is allow companies and their shareholders to pocket more profits at the expense of everyone else. It is because of trickle-down economics that we now have some of the most extreme income inequality in this country in our Nation's history.

To pay for this giveaway to the rich, Republicans are going to take away healthcare benefits and food assistance and cut critical Federal investments in our local communities, our democracy, the environment, and our national security, all so millionaires and billionaires can get an extra buck. It is horrifying, immoral, and un-American.

Unlike many of my Republican colleagues, I have participated in multiple townhalls this year to hear from my constituents. One message that I hear consistently is that people are scared. These are good, honest, hardworking Americans who in one way or another have been forced to rely on Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP, WIC, Head Start, Social Security, or LIHEAP in order to make ends meet for their families, and they are rightfully scared that Republicans are planning to gut those programs.

We will surely hear all kinds of mental gymnastics from our colleagues about how millionaires really need that extra tax cut or how cutting Medicaid won't really lead to a loss of coverage or service. We will hear tortured arguments from Republicans to hide what they are really doing.

When you take a step back and look at everything that is happening, this White House, in concert with Elon Musk and congressional Republicans, have put the country on a dark and troubling path, a fear- based path. It is leading us to a place that has more in common with Stalin's Russia than the free society envisioned by our Founding Fathers. It is heartbreaking to see the lengths to which some people will go to destroy the ideas and institutions that for decades have made this country great.

Mr. Speaker, I think it goes without saying that I rise in strong opposition to this rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Johnson).

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

In January when House and Senate Republicans punted once again on passing a budget and instead passed a continuing resolution, they forgot to include the funding to operate the District of Columbia.

The Senate moved to rectify that mistake and has passed a bill to fix it, and the President has said that he will sign that bill. The Mayor of D.C. has repeatedly spoken to House Republicans about the urgency of fixing the city's budget. The clock is ticking, and if the fix isn't passed, D.C. will have to lay off hundreds of teachers and police officers and curtail critical services in the District.

While this is going on, House Republicans are instead using floor time to prioritize removing the longfin smelt from the endangered species list, to rename the Gulf of Mexico, and to do other, frankly, stupid messaging bills like those we are considering today.

The Speaker may claim that it is just a matter of schedule, but once again, clearly, the gulf in America is between what Americans--the people who live in D.C. and most of the country--think is important and what House Republicans are willing to do.

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

Mr. Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule to bring up H.R. 2753, the Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act, which will prevent the Republican budget from cutting Medicaid or SNAP benefits.

Mr. Speaker, this week the House is voting to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. I am not joking. This is what House Republicans are spending their time doing publicly. However, privately, behind closed doors, according to reports, Republican leadership is meeting with vulnerable, moderate Republicans to try to sell them on trading devastating cuts to Medicaid for tax cuts for billionaires.

Under their plan, they have to cut $880 billion from Medicaid and $230 billion from food assistance just to make the math work for their disastrous reconciliation bill. Mr. Speaker, what is worse is they continue to argue that they aren't doing that, but the math doesn't lie. They can't reach the levels of billionaire tax cuts they want without gutting vital programs like Medicaid and SNAP, programs that the most vulnerable in our country rely upon.

Republicans are publicly claiming that they won't make those cuts, so today I will give them a chance to prove that to the American people by putting their money where their mouths are and voting to ensure those devastating cuts can't move forward in this House.

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 myself the balance of my time to close.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on the previous question. The country deserves better leadership, leadership focused on the common good and public service rather than culture wars and private profit.

The United States faces enormous challenges, and the American people want Congress to act on their behalf. They want us to lower the cost of groceries, rent, and healthcare. They don't want Congress wasting time on performance, on pointless legislation like the bills we are debating today.

The American people want real solutions. They want their elected officials to collaborate, to govern with decency and discipline in ways that benefit the American people, not deep-pocketed donors. They don't want politicians who chase headlines or who try to flatter the whims of erratic leaders with insane ideas like renaming the Gulf of Mexico, invading Greenland, annexing Canada, or reinstituting Alcatraz.

While many Americans are struggling just to get by, the last thing they want is a Republican tax bill that guts their healthcare and denies food and housing to children and seniors so that millionaires can pay less in taxes. It is obscene.

If Republicans carry out their stated plans, it will be one of the largest government handouts in American history, paid for by those who can least afford it and delivered to those who need it least. Talk about corporate welfare.

While the rich will get their tax cut, working families will be stuck footing the bill for Trump's tariffs. It is not too late for Republicans to change course. I pray that enough of them find the courage to push back against this plan, to listen to their constituents, and to do the right thing.

We don't need to slash Medicaid and SNAP, and we can move forward with a sensible tax bill that invests in families and the middle class, not just billionaires and the Fortune 500. I urge my colleagues to vote down this resolution, reject these unserious bills, and join us in the business of governing for the public good, the common good.

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

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

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

Mr. Speaker, when I call this a deeply unserious bill, I think I am probably being charitable. It is unserious, and it comes from a Republican majority that is either unable or unwilling to do the real work of Congress.

In the first disastrous 100 days of President Trump's second term in office, we have seen him sow chaos and distraction in every direction.

This deeply corrupt and unhinged leader has put his biggest campaign donor and the wealthiest man in the world in charge of slashing programs that millions of Americans depend on, from food assistance to nuclear safety to disaster response, all in the name of ``efficiency.'' They have indiscriminately fired thousands of Federal workers, like this is some dystopian reboot of ``The Apprentice,'' except in this episode, they are filling the government with unqualified sycophants, who are running around firing meteorologists, health experts, and emergency responders, people who keep our government running.

Today, in the face of all of that, all of this chaos that our Republican colleagues don't want to talk about, at least we are hearing them engage in some debate over this unserious bill

about renaming the Gulf of Mexico, which I suppose is an improvement because for the past couple of weeks in the markup hearings on their disastrous budget reconciliation bill, they have been unwilling to debate at all. It has just been silence from Republicans as they move through one of the most reckless bills in American history, the same silence as they duck their constituents by canceling townhalls and avoiding media inquiries.

Instead of debating that very important and destructive legislation, they are speaking up today about this deeply unserious bill to rename a body of water. We wish that our Republican colleagues would join us in asking the question that is on more and more Americans' minds: What the heck is going on?

This administration is not draining the swamp. They are torching the country. The global economy is in chaos. We are teetering on the brink of recession. Administration officials are telling us we should perhaps prepare to ration dolls and toys this Christmas. Yet, they want to debate renaming the Gulf of Mexico.

Congress, which more and more appears to just be a joke, is now advancing a bill that literally started off as a joke. That is right. The first person to publicly suggest the name change was not Donald Trump or the author of this bill. It was comedian Stephen Colbert on ``Comedy Central.'' It was a joke back when the Deepwater Horizon oil spill was happening.

Eleven people died in that disaster. Entire ecosystems collapsed. The Louisiana coast was wrecked, along with industries and livelihoods that depend on that Gulf Coast ecosystem. It was all devastated, and Colbert used the fake name ``Gulf of America'' to satirize the absurdity of oil-soaked nationalism.

Now, here we are, 15 years later, in a Congress that apparently thinks they have no real work to do, turning a late-night punch line into the legislative business of the United States House.

I would love to say this is just a one-off, but it fits a disturbing trend. Again and again, this majority keeps replacing science with slogans, governance with grievance, and policymaking with cheap performance art.

The truth is, this bill won't fix a single problem. It does absolutely nothing to help the Gulf Coast. It won't create a single job. It is not going to fix our climate crisis. It is just dumb.

The only thing this bill will do is waste time and taxpayer dollars to stroke the ego of a guy who Sharpied a hurricane map on live TV.

In committee, I offered an amendment that would actually advance the value of efficiency because if this is all about stroking the ego of one man, if it is all about cultish sycophancy, why do it in a piecemeal way with all these individual bills to put his face on Mount Rushmore and the $100 bill?

We actually have legislation from folks across the aisle to do all these things: to rename Dulles Airport, to do national holidays. Why not go all the way? We know that is where this is all heading anyway since everything is in service of one man's fragile ego.

Why not rename the entire planet ``planet Trump''? At least that would be efficient. We would hurry up and get to the inevitable outcome of where this Republican Congress is taking us.

If you like this unserious bill, there is another deal for you because Eric and Don Jr. are selling Gulf of America hats on their website for 50 bucks a pop. One hat even says: ``Gulf of America, Yet Another Trump Development.'' The sales pitch for one includes ``as seen on President Donald J. Trump,'' and get your meme coin while you are at it.

Remember, all of these grifts are for a limited time. They won't last much longer.

The American people deserve much better. A recent FOX News poll--yes, FOX--showed that a big majority opposes the name change for the Gulf of Mexico: 67 percent. Americans know a joke when they see one, even if this Republican Congress doesn't.

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

Mr. Speaker, the gentlewoman is right about one thing: Democrats are outraged because as this President is crashing the global economy, careening us into recession, destroying retirement plans and 401(k)'s, driving up costs for American families on everything from cars to eggs to now us being told we may have to ration toys and dolls this Christmas, as all of that is happening, he is using Congress' Article I trade and commerce authority to do it.

What do you hear from Republicans across the aisle about this thing that is wrecking the lives of so many American families? Nothing. Worse than nothing, they have tied their own hands with a gimmicky bill that they passed to create a false legislative day that never ends so that they can't even invoke Congress' Article I trade authority and put some sensible sideboards on this trade and tariff policy.

It is madness, and the gentlewoman is right. We are outraged.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) to talk about it.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor), who represents the Gulf and may have some wisdom to share with us about this subject.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from Florida.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Rivas).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Magaziner).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Cisneros).

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

Mr. Speaker, the most encouraging thing so far in the debate on this bill is that the only speaker that the Republicans have offered in support of it is the gentlewoman from Georgia. That is it.

I think that is hopeful. It suggests that maybe there is still a little bit of dignity somewhere in the Republican Conference. I guess we will see in a few minutes when we start voting on this bill that is an insult to any serious Member of Congress. It is certainly an insult to the American people and a giant middle finger to the rest of the world.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jeffries), our fantastic Democratic leader, his magic minute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Dexter).

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

Mr. Speaker, I think it says a lot that as we have wasted the last hour of Congress' time on a deeply unserious bill to rename the Gulf of Mexico, and while Republicans have offered just one speaker in support of this preposterous piece of legislation--this monumental disaster, this insult to the American people, and this giant middle finger to the rest of the world--the only speaker to speak in support of this was the gentlewoman from Georgia. I think that just tells us an awful lot today.

The American people think that Congress should do real work, and there is plenty of real work to be done. Americans are watching their 401(k)'s in free fall from this President's reckless tariff games, tariff chaos that is happening by using Congress' Article I trade and commerce authority.

What is this Congress doing about it? They are doing worse than nothing. They have tied their own hands because, in their government funding bill, they have created the gimmick of a never-ending legislative day to prevent them from using their emergency authorities to put some sensible sideboards on Donald Trump's tariff madness.

In the district right next to mine in Napa County, the Trump administration abruptly canceled a $50 million wildfire prevention grant just 4 months after one of the deadliest wildfires in California history. That has been the story throughout the West. Critical funding for a critical need for firefighters and for projects that make us safer from wildfire is in total chaos or canceled because of this madness with Elon Musk, DOGE, and an unhinged President.

What do we hear from our colleagues across the aisle? Nothing. We get bills like this to rename the Gulf of Mexico.

Tribal communities are being hammered around the country. Food insecurity programs are being defunded. Education programs are being frozen. Healthcare resources are being slashed. All the while, the administration continues to fire essential agency scientists and public servants en masse as this Republican Congress shrugs.

The majority is wasting time on an ego-driven rebrand, a performative stunt rooted in President Trump's imperial edict absurdly titled: ``Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness.''

Mr. Speaker, this is so obviously what authoritarians through history have done. They do things like call for parades on their own birthday, or rename things, or do other stunts to distract the American people from the way they are lining their own pockets and taking away fundamental rights.

This Republican Congress appears to be perfectly fine with that.

A new CNN national poll shows that the majority of Americans believe Congress is not doing enough to check this

President's actions. Nearly one-half say that the current administration is weakening our democracy, our economy, and our global standing. This bill really is Exhibit A.

We are not just renaming a gulf. We are drowning public trust in what this institution is supposed to do: serve the people, solve problems, and defend democracy.

Yes, this bill has been called a joke more than once. In committee, I even offered an amendment to rename the entire planet ``Trump'' just to underscore the absurdity of their sycophantic bootlicking.

Now, after seeing this bill advance not only through committee but all the way through to the House floor for a final vote, it is getting a little bit harder to laugh. That is because it is not a joke anymore. It is a case study in misplaced priorities.

Mr. Speaker, when you start erasing or changing phrases like ``climate change,'' ``equity,'' or ``disadvantaged communities'' from government websites, when you ban them from scientific reports, then you are not just playing word games. You are dismantling our capacity to even name the problems we face, let alone fix them, but we are renaming bodies of water.

Mr. Speaker, we are about to open the roll, and as we watch the red and green light up on the big board, I think it is going to be a pretty good proxy for which Members of Congress still think that we should be doing serious work, that we should be reclaiming our Article I responsibilities under the Constitution, that we should have a little bit of dignity in the face of a deeply unserious bill that has wasted our time, and to see which Members of Congress are simply bending the knee to Donald Trump and stroking one man's ego in everything they do.

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

Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.

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

Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 377, I call up the bill (H.R. 276) to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the ``Gulf of America'', and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 276.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 276, sponsored by Congresswoman Greene of Georgia.

Throughout the history of the United States, the executive branch has renamed our public lands and waters. This legislation codifies a portion of President Trump's Executive Order No. 14172, which directed the Board on Geographic Names to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. President Trump signed this executive order on his first day in office.

Enacting this legislation will help make President Trump's historic action permanent and ensure consistency in references to laws, maps, regulations, and records of the United States.

The Gulf of America is critical to the United States because of its energy resources and ecological significance. This renaming symbolizes Republicans' commitment to putting America first, and honors the Gulf of America's important role in unleashing American energy and our Nation's return to greatness.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. Greene), the lead sponsor of this legislation.

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

Mr. Speaker, just earlier this week, this very committee spent 14 hours in a markup on our reconciliation plans that are part of the big, beautiful bill; 14 hours to make America energy dominant, 14 hours to unleash American resources and American jobs. Those 14 hours were mainly spent hearing 121 Democratic amendments to undermine that bill. They wanted to undermine America's energy. They wanted to undermine America's ability to mine our own products. They wanted to undermine America's ability to manage our forests and our resources and take care of this country.

Now, there are a lot of bills that come to this floor to rename things. They might not be the most important bills, but usually they go on a suspension vote because both sides agree we can do renaming, but this one got elevated to a much higher level, so here we are under a rule bill debating whether or not we call the current Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America or if we leave it as it is.

Our friends across the aisle have one objective: to undermine everything we want to do to make America first, and this is no exception.

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

Mr. Speaker, our friends across the aisle want to talk about being serious, but when we marked up this legislation in committee, here are some of the serious amendments that they put out.

Number one, they wanted to rename it not the Gulf of America, but the gulf of Helene, after a hurricane. That wasn't good enough, so they decided to file an amendment to name it the Gulf of America if we rejoin the Paris climate accord. That is real serious. As my friend already mentioned, they wanted to take this bill, it was obviously not germane, they wanted to rename the planet, planet Trump. That is how serious they are in their debate.

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

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

I left out one of the other amendments my colleagues across the aisle filed. They wanted to rename the Gulf the gulf of ignorance. Now, I don't know where they came up with that one. I know they oppose offshore oil and gas production. I know they oppose American energy independence. I know they have a special affinity for fish that aren't in the Gulf and attack recreational fishermen in their endeavor to go out and spend time with their family and catch fish. I don't know what part of the Gulf that they think is so ignorant that they wanted to rename the Gulf the gulf of ignorance, but you can look it up. They filed that amendment. We obviously voted it down.

They had no problem renaming the Cannon Caucus Room the Nancy Pelosi Caucus Room. It is not like this is the first thing that has ever been renamed in this Congress, but we will go ahead and have our debate, and they can vent their frustration on the Republicans and really on our country as they continue.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. Greene).

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

Mr. Speaker, a lot of accusations have been made about serious legislation, about working, about the things that have happened since this new administration has come into office. I would like to recap some of the things that have happened since this new administration has come into office.

Number one, they spent a lot of time reversing a lot of bad executive orders that the previous administration put in place. There were executive orders that did put America last. We have an administration now that is working every day to put America first.

We saw Congress take many actions on Congressional Review Acts to undo bad rules that the previous administration put in place.

Don't believe the accusation that Republicans aren't working. We have 11 committees that have reconciliation instructions, and 8 of those committees have marked up those instructions already. There are instructions on a big, beautiful bill to put America first and to create national security. We will use our resources at home to allow people in America to have a job and a career where they can raise families and grow communities. We are working on policies to avoid a $4 trillion to $5 trillion tax increase on every American.

Mr. Speaker, I believe my friends across the aisle are concerned about a piece of legislation that is going to make a huge difference.

It is a piece of legislation that is going to reverse the destructive policies that their party has put in place over many years. It is a piece of legislation that is going to focus on getting our fiscal house in order and letting Americans keep more of their hard-earned income.

We will develop our resources here at home and become less dependent on China, less dependent on Middle Eastern oil, and all those things that over the years have been eroded away from our American economy and from Americans.

Mr. Speaker, if they want to complain about renaming the Gulf the Gulf of America, they can complain about

that all day. It gives them something to do other than to talk to Americans about the real policies that Republicans are looking at putting in place. It gives them something to do other than make up scare tactics, which is their normal playbook, and to take anything that happens and say, oh, they are going to cut Social Security or they are going to cut Medicare.

We can't even touch Social Security in budget reconciliation. Democrats know that can't happen in budget reconciliation. Yet, they still put those scare tactics out. They talk about what bills are going to do before bill text has been released.

It is because Democrats are on the defensive to protect the Big Government that they have created over time, while Republicans want to put government closer to the people, take power out of Washington, D.C., and truly put America first.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, as we wrap up this so-called debate today, I want to remind everyone of something that they are not seeing on the news every day like they were several months ago, and that is hordes coming across our southern border.

I want to remind people of how much the illegal drugs and human trafficking have stopped on our southern border.

I remind people of that because it was just a few weeks ago that President Trump stood in this Chamber. He addressed the joint session of Congress, and he said something that I think was the most important thing he said that night. He said that we have come to find out we didn't really need different laws. We just needed different leadership.

This debate, as my friends will maybe want to call it a debate, has been really nothing but an attack on President Trump. They are using this piece of legislation to go at President Trump.

I want to remind everybody of something President Trump has said many times. He said: ``They are coming after me because I am standing up for you.''

That is exactly what is happening today. They are coming after this piece of legislation and equating it to President Trump because he is standing up for the American people.

This legislation before us simply follows through on a day one executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I thank Congresswoman Greene for advancing it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to be here today in front of the American people as we debate the merits of the Gulf of America Act. This would rename the body of water formerly known as the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

This is such an important thing to do for the American people. The American people deserve pride in their country, and they deserve pride in the waters that we own, that we protect with our military and our Coast Guard, and all the businesses that prosper along these waters, but Democrats today are outraged.

They are outraged because they love the cartels more than any other people in the world, even more than the American people. They spent the past 4 years funding and voting for policies that ripped our borders open and allowed our country to be invaded by millions and millions of people, drugs and fentanyl that murdered over 300 Americans every single day, human trafficking, child sex trafficking, terrorists, and millions of people who we have no idea where they are in the interior of this country.

Democrats are outraged today because they are America last, and they hate anything that would give the American people pride.

The Gulf of America is one of the most important things that we can do this Congress. This is an executive order written by the President of the United States, which, by the way, is President today because the American people rose up and voted against the Democratic Party that was completely America last.

Section 1 of the executive order lays out the purpose and policy in directives, stating: ``It is in the national interest to promote the extraordinary heritage of our Nation and ensure future generations of American citizens celebrate the legacy of our American heroes. The naming of our national treasures, including breathtaking natural wonders and historic works of art, should honor the contributions of visionary and patriotic Americans in our Nation's rich past.''

Americans have watched Congress week in and week out rename post offices. Democrats vote for it all the time. Democrats aren't afraid to rename anything. They have been renaming military bases because they hate our history and hate our heritage.

This is also the same Democratic Party that cheered when their ground troops, antifa and radical rioters, went throughout American cities and tore down statues, like Lincoln and Washington.

The Democratic Party doesn't want to preserve America's rich history or promote pride in our country, our lands, our people, our businesses, and, yes, our waters, the Gulf of America.

The Democratic Party wants to remain the best business partner to the cartels that they have ever had. It is the cartels that have been enriched by tens of billions of dollars because of Democratic policies, and they will continue to protect them and fight for them.

Mr. Speaker, it is so important for the American people to hear this debate back and forth between what Democrats have to say and what Republicans have to say.

The American people rose up in a historic election in November of 2024, and they told Washington, D.C., they have had enough of the Democratic embrace and love affair with the cartels in Mexico.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats today are fighting to keep the Gulf of America named the Gulf of Mexico because the cartels are their business partners. They fight for the cartels so much that they call an MS-13 gang member, a Maryland man, a man who had two deportation orders, and who was deported to El Salvador, the country of his citizenship, they fight for him so hard that they send Senators and House Members down to fight for him and not for the American people.

The drug crisis in America is the fault of open-border policies and the love affair between Democrats and cartels. Drug trafficking across the Gulf of America is a serious issue. The Gulf serves as the maritime corridor of trafficking operations with drugs like cocaine, marijuana, fentanyl--a poison that murders Americans--methamphetamine, and heroin being transported via fishing boats, private vessels, and commercial maritime routes.

It is our great United States Coast Guard who defend the waters of the Gulf of America. Since January of 2025, the U.S. Coast Guard has seized 101,415 pounds of cocaine and 10,743 pounds of marijuana in operations targeting maritime drug trafficking including in the Gulf of America.

On April 30, 2025, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Tampa off-loaded pounds of cocaine and marijuana worth an estimated $12.3 million at Port Everglades, Florida, seized during operations in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of America.

It is the cartels that use the Gulf of America to invade our country with drugs, human trafficking, and child sex trafficking. It is our great Coast Guard and our Navy that defend the land, our people's land, our States, our businesses and our country from the cartels.

Mr. Speaker, you would think this is the easiest vote that the United States

House of Representatives could take because, after all, everybody in here swore an oath to defend our Constitution and to defend our laws and our land.

Oh, but, no, the Democrats can't do it because we had 4 years of Democrat control where our borders were wide open. The American people are fed up with it. The American people are tired of being torn down and served by America-last policies and politicians that absolutely hate the American people and love the cartels.

Mr. Speaker, names matter, and the Democrats know that.

Parents take a lot of time when they think about what to name a child that they are happy to welcome into the world because they have pride, and they are proud to welcome their new baby into the world. That is why they take pride in the name that they name their child.

As we rename the Gulf the Gulf of America, we are also taking pride in those waters. There are an estimated one-half million businesses operating along the Gulf Coast. The Gulf is a major economic hub, particularly for oil and gas production.

As the people of Spain woke up in darkness for the second time this week because of the climate hoax and the climate agenda, it is the Democrats who pursued those same policies the past 4 years. They hate oil and gas. They want America to be plunged into darkness just like Spain has been because of those lies.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management reports that the Gulf is the Nation's primary source for oil and gas, generating about 97 percent of all U.S. OCS oil and gas production. Other significant industries include water transportation and leisure hospitality. Offshore drilling also plays a crucial role in that region, contributing to about 14.6 percent of the Nation's crude oil and 2.3 percent of its gas.

It is our great U.S. Coast Guard and Navy that defend these waters.

Mr. Speaker, the American people aren't afraid of renaming the Gulf the Gulf of America because the American people want to take pride in our land and in our waters once again.

As Democrats feign outrage today at the President and his executive order and our great audacity to rename the Gulf the Gulf of America, it was the Democrats who first tried to rename an institution after Donald Trump.

In 2024, Representative Connolly tried to rename a prison after Donald Trump, and that happened while the Democrats were waging lawfare like this country has never seen before and should never see again as they were trying to lock up President Donald Trump and put him in prison for the rest of his life for lies and attacks and purely for politics.

It is the Democrats who are constantly feigning outrage over everything the Republicans are trying to do for the American people, and the American people will no longer tolerate it. They told us that in November of 2024.

It is a great honor to rename the Gulf the Gulf of America. This is an honor not only here in Congress but for the President of the United States and for the American people.

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 377 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Scanlon), 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, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, last night the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 377, providing for consideration of two measures.

The first one is H.R. 276, the Gulf of America Act, under a closed rule. The rule provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking member of the Committee on Natural Resources or their respective designees, and provides one motion to recommit.

Additionally, the rule provides for consideration of H.R. 881, the DHS Restrictions on Confucius Institutes and Chinese Entities of Concern Act, to be considered under a closed rule. The rule provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking member of the Committee on Homeland Security or their respective designees, and provides one motion to recommit.

Mr. Speaker, we are here to debate a rule on two pieces of legislation beginning with H.R. 276, the Gulf of America Act.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 276 is straightforward. It permanently renames the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America and directs Federal agencies to update their documents and maps to incorporate the new name.

President Trump directed the name change a few months ago, Mr. Speaker, and there have been no issues during that time. We are simply using our Article I authority to reflect the Gulf's importance to our country.

Moving on, Mr. Speaker, the rule also provides for the consideration of H.R. 881, the DHS Restrictions on Confucius Institutes and Chinese Entities of Concern Act.

It goes without saying, Mr. Speaker, that the Chinese Communist Party does not share our interests or our values.

Confucius Institutes were originally established in America in 2004 and marketed as a way to promote Chinese language and culture, support local Chinese teaching internationally, and facilitate cultural exchanges; however, it has become clear that this was not the real goal, Mr. Speaker. The true intent was a sophisticated and global influence campaign, allowing the CCP to conduct espionage in our country and steal our intellectual property and trade secrets.

While there are less than five Confucius Institutes still currently active in the United States, the Government Accountability Office has reported that 43 of the 74 schools it surveyed still maintain a relationship with the entity that supported their Confucius Institute.

Further, the Department of Education has shown that over $3 billion has been collected by U.S. universities from entities connected to the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party.

This bill, which has been worked on and will pass in a bipartisan manner, I believe, simply bans eligibility for DHS funding from an institution with a relationship to a Confucius Institute, Thousand Talents Program, or Chinese entity of concern until such a relationship is terminated.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to consideration of these pieces of legislation and urge passage of this rule.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would just remind my colleagues that Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. While we are yet to put many of his policies into law, where the Democrats left us was with an interest payment of $2.6 billion a day.

If you took 100 percent of the money from the people that are billionaires in this country, you probably couldn't pay the interest on the national debt for a year.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would just like to point out that in the State of Georgia in the district that was referenced, 68 percent of the voters in that district, as patriots, voted for Donald J. Trump to be President of the United States because they don't believe they need the Federal Government to micromanage their life.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would remind you that the Chinese Communist Party is no longer an economic adversary. They are an enemy. They have been very creative in the way they have embedded themselves into the university systems in this country. This rule gives us a vote on kicking them the rest of the way out of this country. I think, Mr. Speaker, that that is going to pass in a very bipartisan manner.

With all of the antics, yelling, screaming, and pointing of fingers, I just remind you, there is a very serious piece of legislation to deal with the Chinese Communist Party in this rule that I believe will pass in very much a bipartisan manner.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, we have heard a lot over the last few minutes about the $2.6 billion a day interest payment that the Democrats, under Joe Biden's lead, left the United States citizens with. Now we hear their demand that we allow the current tax rates to expire, thereby raising taxes on virtually every American citizen.

It is very convenient that they say billionaires. Now, they have acknowledged millionaires, but just factually speaking, if the tax rates are allowed to expire, virtually every American that works would receive a tax increase. We as Republicans are committed to stopping that.

Today, and this week, the House has the ability to advance two pieces of legislation under this rule:

H.R. 276, the Gulf of America Act, which simply reflects the Gulf's importance to our country, the United States of America, and H.R. 881, the DHS restrictions on Confucius Institutes and Chinese Entities of Concern Act which puts our national security first and bans eligibility for DHS funding from an institution with a relationship to a Confucius Institute, Thousand Talents Program, or Chinese entities of concern until such relationship is terminated.

Mr. Speaker, the Chinese Communist Party is our enemy. That is a decision that they have made. I urge 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.