Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I am in an unusual position here. This attack occurred in my home State of Colorado, as well, and I am actually a cosponsor of the resolution from my friend Mr. Neguse, and I am a cosponsor of the resolution of my friend Mr. Evans.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Neguse would tell you that I called him the night of this attack, and I offered my condolences to him and to his constituents and asked him if there was anything that I could do personally to help.

I offered to write a resolution, a bipartisan one. We didn't get that done, but I offered.

I will tell you where I was this weekend. I am not going to malign other Members of this Chamber and ask where they were, but I will tell you where I was. I flew back on Friday night so that I could spend 1 day, because I had to be back here on Sunday, but 1 day, and I went to a pro-life walk, and then, I went to three separate synagogues to be with the Jewish community in my city.

Mr. Speaker, what I don't quite understand is the concern over this resolution. Here is what, when you get to the ``now, therefore, be it resolved,'' this is what it says, and here is the reality.

Mr. Speaker, we can cosponsor Mr. Neguse's resolution. We can cosponsor and vote for Mr. Van Drew's resolution. We can cosponsor and vote for Mr. Evans' resolution.

Mr. Evans' resolution, the one we are talking about, says: ``Now, therefore, be it resolved that the House of Representatives.''

Tell me if I say anything, Mr. Speaker, that is radical. It says: ``Be it resolved that the House of Representatives condemns Mohammed Sabry Soliman and his antisemitic terrorist attack on peaceful demonstrators supporting the release of the hostages held by Hamas.''

I am for that. That is why I cosponsored Mr. Evans' resolution.

Number three, it says: Be it resolved that the House of Representatives ``affirms that free and open communication between State and local law enforcement and their Federal counterparts remains the bedrock of public safety and is necessary in preventing terrorist attacks.''

It seems reasonable to me.

Number four says: ``Expresses gratitude to law enforcement officers, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel, for protecting the homeland.''

These are all things I can support and vote for. I guess I would ask why anybody would not vote and support the ``be it resolved'' in that resolution.

I rise today in support of my friend and colleague, Representative Gabe Evans, and his resolution denouncing this anti-Semitic terrorist attack.

We shouldn't even be here today debating this resolution. Because of the radical, illegal, and harmful policies being rubberstamped by the Governor of Colorado and the State legislature, here we are.

Mr. Speaker, this terrorist was in our country having overstayed his visa. Instead of turning over this illegal alien to ICE and law enforcement, Colorado lawmakers gave him a sanctuary pass. In fact, they even went a step further and gave this terrorist a driver's license.

I am proud to be from El Paso County, a county in Colorado that stands for commonsense immigration policies and a community that works with our law enforcement to give them every tool to protect our community.

We must work with our Federal, State, and local law enforcement professionals and give them every resource to protect our communities and our country. I am proud to cosponsor and to support this resolution for Mr. Evans.

Mr. Speaker, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have a choice to make.

They thought it was cute to defund the police. That didn't work out for

cities like Portland, Seattle, and St. Louis.

Then they thought it was cute to ignore our border. They allowed millions to storm America. Many were sex traffickers, drug runners, child predators, murderers, and thugs. Now thugs are rioting and burning Los Angeles, all because ICE is arresting and deporting killers, rapists, and drug dealers.

They are attacking local police, Federal agents, and the rule of law.

I think they would have learned, but they have doubled down. They are supporting mayhem, burning American flags, and foreign nationals are waving flags from other countries.

They can't support the police while supporting those who attack them.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 2931. We have allowed sanctuary cities to openly defy Federal immigration law for far too long. There must be real consequences for it.

I thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Finstad) for introducing this important piece of legislation. I am also grateful to Chairman Williams of the Committee on Small Business for working with me to ensure that my community, El Paso County and Colorado Springs, isn't swept up in the radical sanctuary policies coming out of Denver, Colorado.

Specifically, I thank the gentleman for accepting our amendment to ensure that communities like mine, which are fighting back against criminal-coddling politicians, remain eligible locations for SBA offices.

We have heard a lot of folks who are opposed to this bill say things like: It is undermining small business, or: It is creating a culture war.

This is about the rule of law. This is about cities thumbing their noses at taxpayers. You aren't entitled to Federal funds in America.

Mr. Speaker, there is a way to keep these offices in these cities: Stop being sanctuary cities. Comply with the law.

When did complying with the Federal law become something that was optional in America? It is incredible.

As we hold sanctuary jurisdictions accountable, we must recognize that not every community in a sanctuary State is part of the problem. I believe the amended bill draws that line distinctly, and it recognizes districts, like Colorado-05 that I represent, that have been bravely pushing back on their own.

When the Biden administration opened our borders and over 8 million or more crossed into our country illegally, 300 migrants per day rolled into Colorado because cities like Denver welcomed them with our taxpayer dollars. Migrants with connections to dangerous gangs, like Tren de Aragua, didn't just stay in Denver, but they moved to nearby communities, and they took over apartment complexes that were owned by individuals.

El Paso County, my county, recognized the threat, but had zero support from the Colorado legislature, who at the same time passed more laws to make it worse. The Colorado legislature passed laws prohibiting law enforcement from honoring ICE detainers. The Colorado legislature restricted data sharing with Federal immigration agencies. The legislature also passed a law that banned contracts for immigration detention centers.

This is lawlessness, and this body should recognize it as such.

In 2024, my good friend, Sheriff Joe Roybal of El Paso County, and other county leaders filed a lawsuit against the State arguing that these laws are unconstitutional and that they hamper public safety.

Contrast that with cities like Denver, which have exacerbated their housing crisis, and they continue to support illegal immigrants, going so far as to bar city employees from cooperating with Federal immigration enforcement.

Mr. Speaker, talk about playing politics. That is playing politics.

They passed laws in Denver to create a legal defense fund for illegal immigrants. They passed a law to spend more than $180 million a year on related services, all while hosting the SBA regional office and laughing at the American taxpayers while doing it.

This is unacceptable. Sanctuary cities should not be rewarded with Federal offices and resources. That is why I wrote to SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler urging her to move the regional office to Colorado Springs, where we cooperate with Federal authorities and support small business, and we uphold law and order for our citizens.

While President Trump has delivered on his promise to regain operational control of the border, the fight isn't over. We need full cooperation between Federal, State, and local law enforcement.

It is unfortunate that Colorado's leadership is still going in the wrong direction. Despite Governor Polis saying in January that he was open to working with the Trump administration, he instead signed new legislation in May that expands protections for illegal immigrants, even after local officials raised serious concerns.

My community, meanwhile, is doing the work. El Paso County and the Colorado Springs Police Department are partnering with ICE and the DEA. In April, they led a nightclub raid that resulted in over 100 illegal immigrants being detained for human and drug trafficking. This is something that we are going to support with lawlessness? Not in my community. In May, they turned over 13 illegal immigrants to ICE custody.

We understand the real consequences of sanctuary policies. Colorado has become a haven for illegal immigration. In one tragic case that we all now know about this week, an illegal immigrant who overstayed his visa launched Molotov cocktails at innocent Boulder residents in what was a hateful, racial attack, despite the State knowing that that person was already illegally in our country. The State of Colorado gave him a driver's license. We can't let sanctuary jurisdictions defy Federal law and endanger public safety.

I will be clear. El Paso County, my county, is not a sanctuary jurisdiction. Despite the policies from Denver, we are committed to working with Federal immigration authorities and protecting our communities.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Williams and his staff for working with me and working with my county. El Paso County is ready and willing to host the SBA office.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 2931.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about the unspeakable tragedy that happened in Boulder, Colorado, in my home State of Colorado.

The person who perpetrated that crime obtained a visa in August of 2022. Their visa expired in February of 2023, and my home State of Colorado issued them a driver's license in July of 2024.

Mr. Speaker, Colorado lawmakers and our Governor gave him a sanctuary pass. This tragedy could have been avoided. He also was blocked from buying a gun in 2024, and the Biden FBI and the Polis Colorado Bureau of Investigation were on notice and didn't do anything.

Let's pray for the victims and for our Jewish community.

Mr. Speaker, there was a lot of talk tonight about what happens if we vote for this bill.

What are my colleagues voting for if they vote against this bill? Democrats who aren't going to vote for this bill will be voting for a $4.5 trillion tax increase. They will be voting for waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicaid. They will be voting for illegal immigrants stealing from Medicaid. They will be voting for continuing green energy scams.

They will be voting for allowing environmental extremists to continue to drive up the costs of energy for average American families.

What are they voting against? They are voting against $150 billion increase for our military, and they are voting against a base housing allowance increase for our soldiers. That is in this bill. They are voting against tax relief for seniors and working Americans.

Let's end the nonsense. Let's do what is right for America. Let's pass this rule and pass this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Sergeant Olav Chaney, of the Colorado Springs Police Department, for his 35 years of service to our community.

I had the pleasure of taking Sergeant Chaney and his family last night on a Capitol tour, and a delightful family he has.

Sergeant Chaney has also served us in the United States Army. He has become a recognized leader within the police department, and Sergeant Chaney helps lead the Downtown Area Response Team and the Homeless Outreach Team, where he serves our vulnerable population with compassion and with grace.

Sergeant Chaney has also served as Santa Claus for the Toys for Tots program. He is part of the honor guard, and he is an active participant in the Cadet Explorers program.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues in Congress to join me in thanking Sergeant Olav Chaney for his dedication and his service to the Pikes Peak region, to Colorado, and to America.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Utah for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to stand here today on National Police Week to honor the great men and women who protect us every single day, who wear the badge, and who protect our communities.

Mr. Speaker, I thank specifically our El Paso County Sheriff's Office and our Colorado Springs Police Department and all of the local law enforcement in Colorado. They put themselves on the front lines every single day.

I have had the pleasure of doing ride-alongs with our sheriff's office and our Colorado Springs Police Department. I say to my colleagues, Mr. Speaker, that if you haven't stood in their shoes, don't be critical of the job that they do because if you take the time to go do it--and many times we have people who come and want to shadow a Member of Congress for a day--it is a great opportunity to do that. Take a minute and shadow a police officer for a day. Go on a ride-along and learn what they do. I have, as I said, had the privilege to do that many times.

I recall being on a ride-along in the middle of the night, total darkness, walking up on a car. The police officer has a flashlight, and had I not been there, that police officer would have been there by themselves, and essentially they were there by themselves. I

wasn't armed. Imagine doing that for a living day in and day out. Imagine pulling a car over on the side of the road and not knowing if it is just a lady or a man who had a little bit of a lead foot or whether it is an escaped killer who is going to gun you down.

That is the danger that the men and women of law enforcement face each and every day.

It is easy for us to come here to Washington, D.C., and to the Capitol every day and cast our votes. Why? Because we have police who protect us each and every day, back in our home communities, but also right here at the U.S. Capitol.

In my former life, I was a talk show host. I did many other things, but as a talk show host, in my community one time, there was a shooting. It was unfortunate. It was a young man who got pulled over. Police were questioning this young man, and as he was talking to the police, he turned and started to run. As he turned and started to run, he reached into his shorts, and he started to pull out a gun. By the way, they had been told before a description of this young man and that he had a gun. As he turned to run, he was fired upon by the police officer, one shot, and it killed the young man, sadly. There was another man with him who didn't resist. By the way, he survived and did well.

There were some members of my community who stood up and wanted to make an issue out of that, and I kept reiterating the fact that unless you stood in their shoes, what would you do? What would you do if you were the person who had to make that split-second decision about whether or not you were going to fire to save your life or to take the life of another person?

I also met, by the way, with that police officer after that. He was very emotional, and he told me that he had spent nearly 20 years patrolling that community, 20 years sitting with young girls who had been sexually assaulted as victims and with their families and helping them through that, 20 years dealing with someone in that community who had been murdered. He was their advocate. He was their protector for 20 years.

All of a sudden, when his life was threatened and a gun was pulled on him, there were some in the community that didn't support him.

We don't ever want that to be the case in the United States of America. For me, unless you stand in their shoes, you can't be critical.

They protect our communities, and I want to emphasize that our local law enforcement in Colorado Springs, in El Paso County, in southern Colorado, choose to work with Federal authorities. They are not ICE agents, but they go to a lot of places. They work with our Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to root out people who are breaking the law. They help protect our communities.

That same police officer who you complain about when you get pulled over because you had a lead foot, Mr. Speaker, that same police officer is the police officer who you call in the middle of the night when you hear a noise in the backyard and something at the door.

We have to protect the rule of law, and we only do that through protecting our men and women of law enforcement.

A few weeks ago in Colorado Springs, we had a raid by the DEA of a nightclub where over 100 people were detained and arrested for criminal activity. There was trafficking of adults and trafficking of children. There were drugs. There was all sorts of illicit behavior there.

The men and women of the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, the Colorado Springs Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and many others worked hand in hand to make sure that the citizens of my community stayed safe through that all.

I also thank the men and women of the United States Capitol Police, whom I walk past every day. Mr. Speaker, I urge every Member, as they go past our police officers, not to grumpily look at them, not to pass by and act like they don't exist, but to take a moment to shake their hand, tell them thank you, and look them in the eye and tell them how much you appreciate them.

We couldn't conduct our business, the business of the United States Government, in this Capitol Building if we didn't have those men and women who stand watch for us each and every day, and we need to be very thankful for them, as well.

I will continue to support the police as long as I serve here in the people's House. It is important to me, to my community, and, most importantly, to the rule of law. If we don't respect the rule of law, we will lose everything in the United States of America.

We have to have a system that our Founders established that allows us to know that we will be treated fairly. We pass the laws, and those laws are then carried out by law enforcement all across the country. We expect them to be carried out in the traditions of our Founding Fathers, in the tradition that people are treated fairly, that if they get pulled over for speeding, they will be treated the same way.

We have the protections of our Constitution that our police abide by. We are so fortunate in America to have the men and women who protect us each and every day, and we must continue to protect them and stand with them.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and remember the life and service of Police Officer Garrett Swasey to the Colorado Springs community.

On November 27, 2015, Officer Swasey, a member of the University of Colorado Colorado Springs Police Department, responded to a call of an active shooter at the Planned Parenthood office. Officer Swasey, who was one of the first officers on the scene, boldly and courageously engaged the shooter and was fatally shot.

Officer Swasey had been a police officer for 6 years and was a copastor for Hope Chapel in Colorado Springs. Officer Swasey left behind his wife, Rachel, and his children, Elijah and Faith.

Officer Garrett Swasey represented the best in all of us and faithfully and heroically served the Pikes Peak region until his final moments. On behalf of Colorado's Fifth Congressional District, I thank Officer Swasey and his family for their service to our community and our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, over the weekend, the Colorado Springs Police Department, the El Paso County Sheriff's Office, and the Drug Enforcement Administration worked hard to do a raid in my hometown of Colorado Springs, Colorado. They arrested over 100 folks who are very likely illegally in our country. They found drugs, and they found sex trafficking of minors and of women.

Colorado Springs is safer today because of the policies of the Trump administration. As we celebrate 100 days of President Trump's administration, this is part of what he has brought to us.

There were MS-13, Hells Angels, and Tren de Aragua there. They frequented this nightclub that was shut down.

We are in this mess because of far-left policies from our Governor in Colorado, Governor Jared Polis, our State legislature, and the Biden administration.

I thank Sheriff Joe Roybal and all of the people from El Paso County Sheriff's Office and the Colorado Springs Police Department.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the retirement of Colorado Springs Fire Marshal Brett Lacey.

Marshal Lacey joined Colorado Springs Fire Department in 1992, and he has faithfully served our community

for 32 years. Marshal Lacey was instrumental in helping protect our community through his leadership in prioritizing structure and vegetation management, as he established a nationally renowned wildfire mitigation program.

Marshal Lacey was onsite and led the efforts to combat the Waldo Canyon fire and saved my own home and thousands of others in the Black Forest fire that devastated our community, in addition to helping recover victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in congratulating and thanking Fire Marshal Brett Lacey for his service to our country and to the Pikes Peak region.

Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for his leadership on this important wildfire prevention bill. We need these provisions in FOFA to protect our communities and maintain the health of our forests. My own community has seen its share of wildfires. The Hayman fire in 2002 burned 138,000 acres in Pike National Forest and killed five firefighters.

Colorado Springs lies west of Pike National Forest, which contains over 1 million acres of forest. I was evacuated from my own home several years back from a forest fire. Portions of the Pike National Forest are included in the wildfire crisis landscape, and four of the five largest fires in recorded Colorado history have occurred there.

This is a real threat in my backyard, but the pace we are doing fire management is unacceptable, and it has deadly consequences. The scale and severity of wildfires can be managed and contained. This bill gives us the tools to do that, but we have to be proactive.

Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this critical bill.