Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, today we are considering important legislation that will take steps to ensure the Chinese companies can no longer be the ultimate beneficiary of the luxury electric vehicle tax credits that Democrats enacted last Congress.

When Democrats enacted the poorly named and poorly written Inflation Reduction Act, they sold the American people a false bill of goods. They said that the bill would help secure domestic supply chains and decrease our dependence on the Chinese Communist Party in critical industries. They were wrong.

Republicans knew at that time that this would not be the result of the IRA, but, unfortunately, the Biden-Harris administration has been determined to cede as much market share and too many of our taxpayer dollars to foreign adversaries with the implementation of these credits as possible.

The Biden administration has been more concerned about bowing to radical environmentalists than actually helping develop these technologies right here in America.

This legislation will close the Chinese billionaire loophole that currently allows those entities owned by billionaires from countries of concern to benefit from the electric vehicle subsidies, as long as their ties to these hostile governments are deemed unofficial.

The Biden-Harris administration has put out regulations on the electric vehicle credit that effectively exclude battery inputs from being subject to any limitations at all. This bill will also ensure none of the components going into the battery are sourced from China.

Finally, this bill will prevent companies from benefiting from this tax break if they merely partner with foreign entity of concern firms without developing any domestic intellectual property or knowledge transfer.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' and to choose American taxpayers over Chinese billionaires. The choice is clear.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to posthumously recognize Mr. Dave Tolliver.

Dave was born to William and Emma Tolliver on September 5, 1947, in Pierpont, West Virginia, and he passed away on Monday, June 3, of this year.

Dave leaves behind him a long legacy of dedication to his community, his State, and his country.

Throughout his life, Dave took on many important roles. He proudly served in the United States Army, 101st Airborne Division, became an ambulance driver for the Wyoming General Hospital, and worked for the Beckley Fire Department. He also worked as a school bus driver for the Raleigh County Board of Education and eventually ended up working in the local government where he served as a county commissioner in Raleigh County.

His fellow commissioners have credited him with providing 98 percent of the county with water. In a State as mountainous and rural as West Virginia where the majority of the people rely on private wells, this was no small feat.

Dave was an honorable man and a kind man who had a servant's heart and cared deeply for his community. I am so grateful I was able to work with him in my capacity as a Member of Congress.

Dave leaves behind him a wife, two children, and many, many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We are going to miss him. God bless you, Dave.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to remove the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Kelly) as cosponsor of H.J. Res. 148.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 86, which would express the sense of Congress that a carbon tax would be detrimental to the United States economy.

This resolution makes it clear to the American people that we oppose policies that would drive up energy prices for families, businesses, and undermine U.S. energy security, and make Americans more dependent upon China.

A carbon tax would be a gift to our adversaries. It would restrict U.S. energy producers' ability to provide reliable energy to the grid and reduce exports to our allies. It further supports China's goal of dominating and profiting from Biden's green technologies and radical climate agenda.

In addition, the cost of this tax would be borne by the most vulnerable: the poor, the elderly, and those who are living on a fixed income.

Americans are already suffering from the effects of Bidenflation and the President's attack on U.S. energy. If this carbon tax took effect, Americans would feel the pain when they buy their gas for their cars, turn on their lights, or adjust the thermostats in their home.

The burden of a carbon tax would increase the price of everyday necessities, consumer goods, and anything that requires energy resources in their production, manufacturing, transport, or distribution.

This resolution makes it clear that we oppose policies that would drive up energy prices, damage the United States' economy, reduce the American GDP, and hurt American jobs.

I will fight tooth and nail to make sure that our God-given natural resources remain the foundation of America's energy economy, while promoting innovation and an all-of-the-above energy policy.

Mr. Speaker, I commend Chairman Smith for his diligent work. It is a huge win for working families, small businesses, and employers throughout our country. This has set the tone for the Ways and Means' agenda where we are able to make the best package possible.

The child tax credit expansion will help working families, while protecting the important guardrails that we fought so hard to ensure that the program is going to help Americans in need.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my support for American innovation and to highlight the importance of a progrowth tax code.

The United States was built on resourcefulness and good ideas. The desire to be successful in whatever we do has made America the top place to live, work, and raise a family.

Part of what makes the United States the best place in the world to do business is that we respect our workforce and encourage them to think outside of the box.

Because of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, our tax code was strengthened, jobs were created, and the economy flourished. Some of the provisions have now expired. It is a problem. It is imperative that we make the TCJA permanent.

For example, if we cement the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, we can reverse the current limitation on the deductibility of interest payments on business loans. That will save over 850,000 American jobs.

Another example is in research and development. While it was once a paid expense, R&D is now a cost that many small businesses cannot afford. China is subsidizing their R&D costs, giving them a huge advantage over the United States. Modernization and national security shouldn't suffer because of any lapsed tax change.

Our tax code should work for American workers and businesses and not against them.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Estes for this Special Order tonight.

Mr. Chair, had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on rollcall No. 631, Bean of Florida amendment 39.

Amendment No. 42 Offered by Mr. Burchett

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in favor of the Hershel ``Woody'' Williams National Medal of Honor Monument Location Act, which would locate the new National Medal of Honor Monument near the Lincoln Memorial on The National Mall here in Washington, D.C.

Woody was an American hero from my home State of West Virginia. When he passed away last year, we paid tribute to him as he was laid in honor in the rotunda of the United States Capitol. It was his dream to honor the final Medal of Honor recipient in our Capitol, never dreaming that it would have been himself.

Woody was a country boy. He tried to enlist at the age of 16. He wasn't very tall and he wasn't allowed in then, but he made it in at 17 years old. He grew up hunting on a farm and was always a good shot. He loved his country more than anything, and he would do anything possible to defend it, so he did. He really epitomized that great, great Greatest Generation.

He was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1945 for his courage in the battle of Iwo Jima where he singlehandedly--he was the guy that made the shot--fought the Japanese with the flamethrowers, clearing the path for more American troops.

Marines raised the American flag on Mount Suribachi--we can visualize that picture because we have all seen it--that very day, resulting in the iconic photo that showed that America was winning the war in the Pacific.

Woody was not just a constituent and a hero; he was a friend. I served with him for years in Rotary, right there in little Milton, West Virginia. His legacy of service, dedication, and patriotism will live through the countless lives that he touched. His impact on our West Virginia community cannot be overstated, as his service to our veterans has continued and continued long after his career in the Marine Corps.

With Veterans Day on Saturday, this bill couldn't be more timely to honor our servicemen and -women who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

This monument pays tribute to the recipients of America's highest military honor for valor in combat.

Mr. Speaker, the monument will remind future generations of the values that shaped and preserved our great Nation. I urge every Republican and Democrat in the House and Senate to vote for this bill.

Mr. Chair, American frontier investors can be a powerful partner of the State Department and emissaries of American values in developing regions of the world. In these critical regions, they provide ideal alternative sources of capital over China or other authoritarian regimes. For our friends and allies with developing or unstable economies that China or other adversaries want to undermine, American investment is hard power, creating infrastructure, factories, boosting crop yields, industrial output, and jobs. In countries where America is locked in competition for influence, American investment in a gas plant, pipeline, or telecom network can sway the strategic calculation of the home government.

We rightly hold our investors to a high standard, through the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other laws, but that higher standard makes it harder for them to compete against Chinese or Russian investors that are heavily and unfairly subsidized. In exchange, when they come under attack by corrupt home governments, we owe them the support of our diplomats and the full weight of the U.S. Federal Government.

Diplomatic support can persuade corrupt governments to change course and to play by the rules, but too often, the State Department takes a hands-off approach.

The hands-off approach can reach absurd heights. Even in cases where a kleptocratic government blatantly expropriated American investments, these investors took that government to arbitration and won, and then took that award to our United States Federal

Courts to get recognition of the award under the Federal Arbitration Act, our State Department has refused to help Americans right the wrong and collect the award.

This has to stop. We are in competition with corrupt dictators all across the globe. American investors need to know that American diplomats have their back.

I ask for your support of the amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the veto override on H.J. Res. 39.

In the past 5 months, the Republican-led House of Representatives has taken more action to hold China accountable for its unfair trade practices than the past 4 years that I have been in Congress, all while the Biden administration is actively working to promote Chinese interests.

The Biden administration is allowing the Communist Chinese Party to outmaneuver us at every step, even rewarding them by vetoing bipartisan legislation that puts America first.

Letting Chinese solar companies cheat directly handicaps U.S. solar manufacturers and puts America at a disadvantage.

Washington Democrats and the Biden administration have been in lockstep with China since they entered the White House.

It baffles me that the administration is so quick to put America last to help China succeed. We need a strategic decoupling from China.

Everyone in the United States should be focused on countering Chinese influence by bringing jobs back to America and implementing solid trade agreements with our allies.

It is imperative that we override this veto.

Mr. Chair, President Biden's threat to veto H.R. 1 tells everything we need to know about the bill. It will unleash American energy and bring down energy costs.

H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act, is about increasing domestic production, permitting reform, streamlining energy exports, and reversing President Biden's anti-energy agenda.

In the first week of Joe Biden's Presidency, he stopped American energy production by halting needed permits for energy production and shutting down the Keystone pipeline, also sending home 300 West Virginians who were out there working. He drained our Strategic Petroleum Reserves while failing to fix the problems that he had created.

Americans are sick of these policies, which is why they elected a Republican majority to be a needed check on the Biden administration's war on American energy.

H.R. 1 is necessary to jump-start American energy production, and is one of many crucial energy policies that I am looking forward to supporting.

Mr. Chair, I wish to enter into a colloquy with the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise), my good friend, the majority leader.

Mr. Chair, I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana.

Mr. Chair, I thank Leader Scalise for taking the time to highlight such an important project. He has been a champion of American energy and the Mountain Valley pipeline is a great example of domestic energy production.

I am from an energy-producing State and I have seen and lived the effects of bad energy policy coming out of Washington, which is exactly why I came to Congress to fight for West Virginians and my like-minded fellow Americans.

Today, I am introducing the complete American pipelines act, a bill to complete the Mountain Valley pipeline and other America-first projects that have been needlessly held up by leftwing radical courts.

All gas from the Mountain Valley pipeline will supply domestic energy markets.

Mr. Chair, this means lower energy prices across the country as supply will dramatically increase. The Mountain Valley pipeline is crucial to American energy. Remember that Americans' energy security is our American security.

Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in support of H.R. 1.

H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act, is about increasing domestic production, permitting reform, reversing President Biden's anti-energy agenda, and streamlining energy exports.

To be perfectly frank, the Biden administration has been putting out anti-energy policies since his first week in office. He shut down the Keystone pipeline and halted permits for domestic energy production that we desperately needed.

He drained our Strategic Petroleum Reserve to try to stop the pain from his terrible policies instead of coming up with real solutions.

Just last night, he tweeted that electric cars are the future.

I have never seen an administration so out of touch with the American people, which is exactly why these same people affected by anti-energy policies elected a Republican majority in the House of Representatives.

In the majority, our first priority is to bring down energy costs and increase energy production. The Lower Energy Costs Act is just the first of many crucial energy policies I am looking forward to seeing over the next 2 years.

One of the pieces of legislation that I am looking forward to seeing is the completion of the Mountain Valley pipeline. The Mountain Valley pipeline is a great example of why permitting works and exactly why we need more of it.

In this project's case, the administration isn't the problem. It is the leftwing courts--which are more radical than Joe Biden, which should really tell you something--that are holding up this important pipeline.

When the pipeline is completed, it will be delivering natural gas within months, meaning lower energy prices for Americans as supply will dramatically increase.

There is no time to waste. Remember that energy security is national security.

Mr. Speaker, triple negative breast cancer is an aggressive breast cancer and patients with undiagnosed metastatic TNBC have a less than 30 percent chance of surviving past five years. Unlike other breast cancers, TNBC is more difficult to treat. There are limited therapies available specifically addressing the management of TNBC, which has made treating this disease a challenge for clinicians. In my home state of West Virginia, the breast cancer mortality rate among women is the 8th highest in the U.S. The prevalence of TNBC in West Virginia is 13 percent, and studies have found links between obesity and TNBC patients in the state. It is imperative to increase the overall wellness of our population, especially for women suffering from a disease as invasive as TNBC. That's why we need more research and access to care in West Virginia to catch this disease early. We need to work together not just this month, but every month, to maintain momentum to improve early diagnosis, treatment planning, cancer typing, and research to help all those affected by TNBC.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.

All life is sacred. Defending innocent lives should not be a policy issue.

This legislation protects babies who are not only born but who are then left without care from an attempted abortion. A baby who survives an abortion should receive the same medical attention that any other premature baby would.

These precious souls are given another chance at life. It is unacceptable that there are no criminal charges for those who want to take their life away. The people who allow babies to be killed after birth must be fully prosecuted.

Let's be clear: Killing a baby who is born alive, regardless of an attempted abortion, is murder.

The previous Democrat-controlled House has refused to vote on this bill. Today, a Republican-led majority keeps our commitment to America by voting on legislation that upholds the sanctity of life.

I urge the passage of this bill on the House floor.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act.

The last 2 years under Democrat rule have resulted in terrible policies and more unnecessary taxes for the American people. Americans have been feeling the weight of destructive policies since their first day in power, and now it is time for our Republican majority to fix this mess.

The pressure on American taxpayers has continued to increase since the passage of the so-called Inflation Reduction Act when they gave $80 billion of new funding for the IRS to hire the 87,000 new agents to needlessly audit families and small businesses that are forced to fund the out-of-control spending and misguided Green New Deal priorities.

How do more audits and scrutiny from the IRS benefit hardworking Americans? Liberals in Congress chose to target American taxpayers by supercharging the IRS, which solely focuses on auditing the hardworking Americans who already pay more than their fair share. This is unacceptable and must be reversed.

Through the Inflation Reduction Act, Democrats used the tools of the IRS as a means to increase reckless spending.