Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1 because I want America to live up to its democratic principles, and that means having a government that really is for the people and not just for those with the means. This bill is about ensuring that all voters, regardless of ZIP Code, race, or party, can participate in our democracy.

I am proud that H.R. 1 includes a bill I introduced, the Same-Day Voter Registration Act, which will increase access to the ballot box across the country.

Same-day registration already exists in 17 States and the District of Columbia. In those locations, more people, not fewer, participate in elections.

I spent nearly two decades organizing to make sure New Mexicans, including those in Indian Country and in rural America, have access to our democracy.

This commonsense provision gets rid of arbitrary registration deadlines, which often fall long before the real time needed to process voter registration applications. Same-day voter registration is one of many provisions in H.R. 1 that will make elections more accessible.

Mr. Speaker, as a 35th-generation New Mexican, I rise today in support of S. 47. This bill represents a major victory for conservation, and I want to congratulate the chairman and his co- drafters on its success.

In my home State of New Mexico, new protections in the Organ Mountains, the Cerros del Norte, and San Juan County will add over 250,000 acres of new wilderness, the highest conservation protection this Congress can bestow.

These lands will preserve our ecosystems, protect access to clean, consistent water flows, and help our State to begin to adapt to the realities of climate change.

By permanently authorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund, S. 47 will help my home State and every State in this Nation, and I strongly encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

Madam Speaker, I rise to urge President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to reopen the Federal Government. Let's be clear: the crisis is not along our Nation's southern border. The real crisis is getting people back to work.

I cannot stand by silently while nearly 800,000 Federal workers, thousands of which are in New Mexico, won't receive a paycheck, and countless, innocent people suffer because they will not receive essential services from the Federal Government.

The government shutdown impacts the State of New Mexico more than almost anywhere in this country. The government shutdown directly affects more than 6,000 Federal employees throughout New Mexico. These dedicated public servants are not getting paid, but they still need to pay the rent, put food on the table, and they still need to make payments on their car loans and student loans.

Almost 50,000 residents of New Mexico's First Congressional District depend on SNAP benefits to feed their families. The government shutdown means that SNAP benefits are threatened.

As someone who relied on government assistance programs when I was raising my daughter as a single mom, I have been there, and I know that it is devastating for these people to worry about how they are going to pay for their next meal and take care of their families.

Our Indian tribes, pueblos, and nations who rely on Federal funding for aging services and Indian Health Services for medical care, are already being impacted by this shutdown, and the suffering will grow greater as the shutdown drags on. If this shutdown continues, 62 percent of Indian Health Services will be forced to cease offering services, and 54 percent will be forced to lay off essential staff. This is a recipe for disaster.

On the Navajo Nation in my State, people have been trapped in their homes without food, water, and medicine because the government has failed to fund the Federal maintenance to plow snow from the roads.

The Department of Agriculture's Food Distribution Program on Indian reservations runs out of funding at the end of this month. This program provides nutrition assistance to nearly 90,000 Native Americans.

Madam Speaker, I voted to pass legislation through this House that Democrats have put forward to reopen the government. What we need now is Senator Mitch McConnell and President Trump to show that same kind of leadership and act on these bills, which the Senate already passed last year, and reopen our government.