Floor Statements

Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chair, I rise in support of my amendment to H.R. 1.

This week, we are focused on fighting for the public interest, fighting for transparency, and fighting for accountability. We have a rare opportunity to restore faith and trust in our system of government.

Mr. Chair, I thank all those who have fought to bring us to this point and for our upcoming major historic vote on H.R. 1.

As we speak, I am working under a mandate from the people of central Virginia. They expect me to fight back against a broken Washington and to work to protect our democracy, whether from special interests, barriers to voting, or foreign influence.

Right now, we are seeing an uptick in hostile attacks against election systems across the globe, with the rise of the internet, anonymous hackers, non-state actors, and foreign intelligence operatives, as they rise as formidable and dangerous adversaries.

Our elections are the bedrock of our democracy.

If our voting infrastructure is compromised or attacked, the entire integrity of our electoral system could come into question.

This was especially clear following Russia's interference in the 2016 election, and it is almost certain that nefarious actors will continue their deliberate attempts to attack our elections or put in doubt the outcome of those elections.

During this time, it is critical that the U.S. election officials have accurate and up-to-date information about where our election security systems are most vulnerable.

This amendment pushes back against foreign attempts to interfere in our electoral process and helps identify any potential threats that may exist.

This amendment would use the invaluable expertise of public servants in the intelligence community and Department of Homeland Security to strengthen the security of Federal and State election systems.

My amendment would require a Federal assessment of the scope of potential threats to the security of America's election system, including cyber, terror, and state actor threats.

This assessment would happen 180 days prior to every general election to allow the States the opportunity to respond and strengthen their voting system.

Additionally, this legislation would direct the Director of National Intelligence and DHS to update Federal and State officials on possible vulnerabilities and to provide assessments on how best to stop these threats.

As a former CIA case officer, I greatly appreciate the objective and nonpartisan work of the national security and intelligence communities. With their help, we can fight back against foreign interference, we can safeguard our elections.

The dedicated men and women of our national security agencies and of our intelligence agencies have demonstrated their ability to collect information on foreign actors' intentions and provide election security assessments that are intellectually rigorous, objective, timely, and useful to the States they would provide them to.

As we are having an important discussion about safeguarding the integrity of the vote, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment to H.R. 1.

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

Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis) for his comments and for his support of this amendment.

Mr. Chair, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren), my colleague.

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

Mr. Chair, I am ready to close, and I yield back the balance of my time.

May I reclaim my time, Mr. Chair?

Mr. Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes).

Mr. Chair, I am ready to close, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I rise in support of this amendment to H.R. 1.

I speak today as someone who has spent my career in public service identifying foreign threats to the safety and security of the American people. As a former CIA officer, I worked to identify threats to our country, our fellow Americans, and threats that would leave our Nation vulnerable to attack, espionage, or foreign influence.

As Congress acts this week to restore transparency to our government and regain trust from the people we serve, we must take steps to prevent foreign influence in our democratic process. I support efforts to push back against the very real threat of foreign financial influence. I know nefarious actors are out there. I know they are tireless in their commitment to target our foundational institutions, including our voting process.

The American people shouldn't have to worry about the ability of foreign governments or entities to influence our elections and our citizens, but senseless loopholes in our campaign finance system have left our electoral process vulnerable to spending by foreign governments, corporations, and foreign nationals. These foreign entities should not have the ability to exert influence over the issues that impact Americans most, including the national defense, healthcare, and our financial services sector. That is why I am proud to cosponsor this much-needed, bipartisan amendment.

This amendment would strengthen the integrity of our elections by encouraging our government to ensure

that our campaign finance system is not falling prey to signs of foreign money in our politics. It would require the FEC to conduct an audit to look for foreign money in our elections and then require the FEC to report its findings.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to celebrate the life of Dr. James Harold Bowles. Dr. Bowles was born in June 1921, and raised on the Pea Ridge in Goochland County, Virginia.

Dr. Bowles served in the U.S. Army and graduated from Virginia Union University before attending medical school and returning home to Goochland to open his medical practice. As he began his career serving his patients, Dr. Bowles continued his service as the first African American to serve on the Goochland County Board of Supervisors where he worked to strengthen our community for 32 years.

He was a lifetime member of the NAACP, a trustee of Emmaus Baptist Church, and an active member of community organizations across central Virginia. Above all, he was a beloved husband, father, brother, uncle, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He left an indelible mark on our community.

Madam Speaker, I leave you with the advice Dr. Bowles frequently gave. May it guide our work here in this Chamber.

SMILE. S, seek to understand before being understood; M, make others feel important; I, it is not about me; L, listen twice as much as you speak; E, emphatically, enthusiastically, and quickly admit it when you are wrong.

When you do this, dialogue can be easily achieved.

Madam Speaker, over the past 34 days, we have heard that this shutdown is about security. Well, I am a former undercover CIA officer, so let's talk about security.

There is nothing secure about FBI agents working without pay. There is nothing secure about them closing down investigations and losing their informants, their counterterrorism informants.

There is nothing secure about TSA employees who keep us safe in the airspace working without pay.

There is nothing secure about our Customs and Border Patrol agents, who work along the very border we are discussing, working without pay.

There is nothing secure about our air traffic controllers working 10 hours a day to keep our airplanes safe in the air.

There is nothing secure about our diplomats, who work in war zones and around the world to keep this country safe, working without pay.

There is nothing secure about the 42,000 dedicated members of the U.S. Coast Guard working without pay as they defend our shores.

The public servants who work every single day to protect the lives of their fellow American citizens deserve better. I know this because I used to be one of them.

This shutdown is a disgrace. It is hurting our national security. We must end it now so that Americans can sleep safely at night; Federal workers can receive the paychecks they have earned; and our country's military, economic, and diplomatic strength can be preserved before it is too late.

Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to share another story of how this reckless shutdown is hurting real people in real communities, including in central Virginia.

Chesterfield, Virginia, resident Donna Ingram has worked for the U.S. Department of the Treasury for 15 years. She is a mother of two, and because of the shutdown, she is worried about her ability to make ends meet. Earlier this month, Donna's pay stub showed the word ``furloughed,'' and her paycheck showed the number zero.

Donna is currently in the middle of medical treatment, but because of the shutdown's financial harm, she has been forced to discontinue her treatment. Donna said her livelihood is at stake and that she could lose everything she has worked so hard for over the past 15 years.

Donna said that Federal employees like her want to work; they want to serve our government and our communities; and they want to continue their service.

Yet this is how we treat our public servants here in the United States? Are they bargaining chips?

I will continue to push for an immediate end to the shutdown, because I do not think they should ever be used as bargaining chips. There are hundreds of thousands of hardworking Federal employees like Donna who are depending on us, their elected officials, to do our jobs, to open this government, and to restore the function of our government.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to raise the alarm and sound the alarm about the shutdown and how it is harming the people of central Virginia.

Across the country, hundreds of thousands of Federal employees are working without pay or are furloughed, including critical law enforcement personnel. The best way to illustrate the destructive effects of this shutdown is to share a story from one of my constituents in Virginia's Seventh District. She said to us:

My husband is a Federal employee and the sole provider for

our family, and right now, we don't know when he'll get paid.

Because I got sick last year, we now have less money in the

bank, and we're not sure how we can hold on.

While he could make more money in the private sector, my

husband believes that working in a Federal job is his way of

making a difference through public service--and every day, he

is proud to go into the office at 5 a.m. to do what he can to

serve his country.

One of the hardest days of his life was when he came home

and said that earlier that day, he had told those under him

that they were furloughed--just days before Christmas.

We are begging you to reopen the government.

This story demonstrates the importance of fixing this mess and reopening the government.

I encourage my colleagues and leadership to act now in a bipartisan way to protect the livelihoods of these hardworking families.