Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Latino Book Review's 10th Anniversary. For the last 10 years, Latino Book Review has worked diligently to make sure Latino voices have their rightful place among the Nation's great contributors to arts and literature across the United States.

Latino Book Review was founded in 2016 with the purpose of elevating the voices of our Nation's Latino communities. In offering a forum for book reviews, news and scholarly articles, podcasts, art and more, they provide audiences with a reverent celebration of Latino cultural heritage.

In their first decade, Latino Book Review has achieved remarkable accomplishments. They have included contributions from over 500 authors, provided students in higher education from across the country with the opportunity to publish their work, and gave the recipients of nationally acclaimed awards the chance to share their journey. In their first 10 years, across their platforms, they have promoted Latino contributions to our Nation's cultural landscape to over 100,000 individuals.

Not only does this anniversary mark the recognition of the growing legacy of the organization, but it also celebrates Latino Book Review's relocation to San Antonio, Texas. It is a tremendous honor to welcome the organization to a city whose identity is deeply rooted in an immense pride in its Latino culture.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in celebration of Latino Book Review's 10th Anniversary. May they continue to shed light upon the stories, voices, and images that define our Nation's Latino communities.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the Ordination of Father Jimmy Drennan. A leader guided by grace, hope and compassion. Father Jimmy's commitment to service embodies an unyielding dedication to ensuring the spiritual growth of our San Antonio community.

Father Jimmy's life of service has taken many roles throughout his life. As a student at

Highlands High School in San Antonio, he served as the school's mascot for three years, encouraging joy and community among his peers. He also served in the Student Council and as Class Vice-President his senior year,

Outside of school, Father Jimmy developed a love for the Roman Catholic faith by the following the powerful examples of his mother, Anne Drennan, and his grandmother Cecil. At the age of 17, he made the Sacrament of Baptism at St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church, the same parish where he currently serves as Pastor.

As a young adult, Father Jimmy's commitment to service took the form of a police officer with the San Antonio Police Department from 1985 to 1991. After seven years as an officer, he felt his calling to the Priesthood and entered the Assumption Seminary. On May 10, 1996, Father Jimmy was ordained by the Archdiocese of San Antonio.

Father Jimmy's time as a priest has seen him take multiple roles throughout the archdiocese. He has served as pastor of St. Paul Catholic Church, St, Joseph Catholic Church--Honey Creek, and St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church. He has also held administrative roles across the archdiocese. He serves as the Spiritual Director for the First Responder focused Shields of Christ ACTS Teams and was the Chaplain to former San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.

Father Jimmy has also dedicated himself to serving the San Antonio community. He is a Board Member for Project Quest, a workforce development organization. For over thirty years, he has been a trusted leader with the COPS-Metro Alliance. He is also an outspoken advocate for the immigrant communities.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in celebration of a pastoral career dedicated to serving one's community. For over thirty years, Father Jimmy has been a source of hope and inspiration to many, and I am grateful for all he has done for our San Antonio community.

Mr. Speaker, this bill is a bad idea. It tramples on the rights of Americans in order to protect a foreign government from the consequences of its own actions.

Let me give you some context. The West Bank is currently experiencing the worst year of settler violence ever recorded. Israeli settlers have committed violence, terrorism, and many other things against Palestinians, with the goal of driving them out of the lands they have lived in for generations. It is an ethnic cleansing. They have assaulted and killed Palestinian Americans and laid siege to their homes.

The Israeli Government has turned a blind eye to this violence and, in many cases, has actively supported it, protecting the criminals and not the victims.

The same government has orchestrated a record expansion of illegal Israeli settlements, a violation of international law and a crime against the Palestinians who live there.

Americans see this. The world sees this. Yet, what is the priority of our House of Representatives right now? It is not to stop the violence, not to stop the displacement, and not to protect the children. The priority of this House today is a bill that threatens to take Federal student aid away from American citizens and to protect this activity in these settlements.

Don't let anyone convince you that this bill is about anti-Semitism or even just about Israel. The bill's language is written to include Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. It is in defense of an illegal act by a foreign government, and the victims will be American students.

If this House should be debating anything on this issue, it should be sanctions on these settlements and not a bill that protects them.

Let me lay out a scenario so that we understand exactly how this piece of legislation would work.

If a university in Texas decided tomorrow to stop doing business with a company in South Carolina, California, or Idaho, it would face no consequences under American law. Make the same decision about Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, and this bill strips American students of their Pell grants and American veterans of their hard- earned benefits. This bill holds American students' education hostage to protect a foreign government.

We would be doing this in flagrant violation of the United States Constitution. In the landmark decision NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co., the Supreme Court held that a politically motivated boycott is protected expression under the First Amendment. This isn't an obscure case. It is the reason the sponsors of the bill wrote the word ``nonexpressive'' into the text.

Yet, every example that the sponsors point to is plainly political. A boycott is a political act. It is protected under the First Amendment, and you don't have to even agree with the boycott to support an American's right to engage in it.

Every Member of this body raised their hand and swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America, and I urge every Member of this body today to take that oath seriously and vote against this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today because we have all witnessed the brutality of ICE on the streets of America, and Members of Congress have witnessed that brutality behind the closed walls of detention centers across our Nation.

ICE has become a rogue, abusive agency that should be disbanded. ICE agents are roving across our communities with impunity, killing people in cold blood, including U.S. citizens, while Donald Trump's cronies profit.

These ICE agents have not gone rogue alone. The entire agency has gone rogue under the direction of Donald Trump and Stephen Miller. Masked ICE agents in unmarked cars are working with Trump allies, like Texas Governor Greg Abbott, to meet quotas that fuel the President's mass deportation campaign.

Every single day they are stopping, profiling hardworking Brown men on their way to construction jobs in the early morning, families on their way to school, going to pick up their kids, and H-E-B workers, grocery store workers in Texas getting off their shifts at warehouses and stores at night.

Let us remember the names of those whom ICE has murdered. The first one was a San Antonian, Ruben Ray Martinez. There was another Texan, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo of Houston. Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and Johan Sebastian Duran Guerrero--these folks were victims of the ICE murders.

In Texas alone, over a dozen people have died in ICE detention. These deaths are not accidents of an overwhelmed system. They are the results of this administration engineering a rogue agency to profit at the expense of vulnerable people. We must shut down places like the Dilley detention center, a trailer prison, where children as young as 2 months old are in prison.

For each child who is thrown in there, for each pregnant woman thrown into Dilley, there is an American company, CoreCivic, with American investors who make more money for each child, each woman, and each person who is in prison.

We have allowed for the commodification of child imprisonment in our United States of America under President Donald Trump. This must change. ICE should be disbanded. It has gone rogue, and we must shut down the Dilley detention center.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Al Rendon for receiving the Aguila Aztlan award from the Centro Cultural Aztlan for his instrumental work in documenting and photographing the soul of Tejano and Mexican American culture in South Texas.

For over 50 years, Mr. Rendon captured reflections of the soul of a people whose music, food and daily activities connect the past with the present and future.

A San Antonio native, Mr. Rendon developed an interest in photography from an early age. His mother shared her love for photography with him, and after she gave him her camera, the city quickly became his muse. As a student at Central Catholic High School, his passion grew, joining the school's yearbook staff and covering live concerts. Following graduation, Mr. Rendon pursued his passion and launched a career that would document iconic moments in the history of South Texas.

Early in Mr. Rendon's career, he began making a name for himself in shooting rock concerts held at San Antonio's HemisFair Arena and Municipal Theater. After a decade in the rock scene, Mr. Rendon was recruited by the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center to photograph several of their cultural events and Conjunto Festival. It was at these events that in 1986 Mr. Rendon pivoted his focus to capturing the Mexican American community of Texas.

In doing so, Mr. Rendon reconnected with his culture and was placed on a path that has helped others do the same. He focused on documenting the legacy of the spirit of Mexican Americans in Texas. He has created exhibitions of Conjunto and Tejano artists, portraits of cultural leaders, representations of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Charreada photos, and more. Mr. Rendon's cultural focus has led to his work being held at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, and the Mexican American Museum of Art in Chicago.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in celebrating Mr. Rendon's extraordinary career. It is through his lens that stories of passion, determination, and community are preserved. He is leaving behind a powerful legacy for future generations to broaden their understanding of the world.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the remarkable career of Dr. Michelle Atchison, Ph.D., as she retires from the University of Texas at San Antonio as the Director of Federal Relations and the Senior National Security Strategist. Dr. Atchison dedicated her career to selflessly serving our Nation, ensuring our armed forces remained at the forefront of innovation. Her commitment to service also extended to the San Antonio community, and I, along with the city's students are grateful for her contributions.

Raised in a military family, Dr. Atchison learned the importance of service from an early age. Upon her graduation from the University of California at Los Angeles, she joined the United States Air Force-- launching a 27-year career, where she would rise to the rank of Colonel. Throughout Dr. Atchison's career, she continued her studies, earning a master's degree from the Catholic University of America and a Ph.D. from George Washington University.

Throughout Colonel Atchison's Air Force career, she held senior military command and senior staff positions, including serving as Chief of the Science and Technology Division, USJFCOM Experimentation; Chief Scientist for Air Force Experimentation Office; and Senior Advisor for the Air Force Command and Control, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Center. Colonel Atchison's leadership was instrumental in advancing projects that enhanced the operations of USCENTCOM and our NATO allies. Outside of her scientific roles, she also served as a Congressional Affairs and International Political Officer, where she led the restructuring of the Civil Air Patrol and the Air Force education processes.

Following her career in the Air Force, Dr. Atchison spent 10 years in the private sector, where she led strategic partnership development for advanced technology laboratories. In 2013, Dr. Atchison joined the University of Texas System as their Associate Vice Chancellor for Federal Relations for National Security.

In 2021, Dr. Atchison joined the University of Texas at San Antonio. For the last five years, Dr. Atchison has been a remarkable advocate for the university. She has been a force in the university's emergence as a leading institution of higher learning. There is no doubt that current and future students will benefit greatly from her work.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in celebrating the remarkable career of Dr. Michelle Atchison, Ph.D. Her leadership and selflessness to serving our Nation will be long remembered. May future generations of leaders look to her as a powerful example of bravery and dedication in service to those around them.

Madam Chair, Israel does not need and, quite honestly, does not deserve more American money for weapons.

Prime Minister Netanyahu has taken Israel down an ugly path. The tragedy of October 7 has become a justification for the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians.

Self-defense does not include indiscriminately bombing homes, hospitals, churches, schools, or refugee camps. There were even credible reports of children intentionally shot in the head and chest.

For decades, our Nation gave Israel billions to facilitate peace and a two-state solution. Instead, Israel has chosen more war and more occupation.

Today, it occupies not only Gaza and the West Bank but parts of Syria and Lebanon.

If there are no consequences, why in the world would Benjamin Netanyahu change what he is doing?

Words are not enough. Condemnations are not enough. If we hope to change Israel's behavior, we must use our leverage.

The American people have seen this tragedy with their own eyes. They have made their judgment. They do not support giving Israel more weapons. Do not reward a wrongdoer. Now it is up to us in this Chamber to take action.

Madam Chair, I support this amendment.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to celebrate the career of a faithful servant to our Nation, Ms. Serafina L. De Los Santos, as she retires from the United States Air Force as the Executive Director to the Commander of the 502nd Force Support Group at Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA). Ms. De Los Santos selflessly served our Nation in the civilian service for 23 years, dedicating herself to ensuring the highest operational standards for our military. Her commitment to service also extended to the San Antonio community and I am grateful for her contributions to our neighbors.

A native of Brownsville, Texas, Ms. De Los Santos' military career began in 1977 when she began a 5-year tenure with the Air Force. Following her departure in 1982, she enrolled as a student at the University of Houston where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Political Science in 1986.

Upon receiving her degree, Ms. De Los Santos was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army. She served as an officer until she retired from active duty in 2004 with the rank of Major. Following her retirement, she began her civil service career as the Senior Logistics Officer for the 470th Military Intelligence Brigade. She would remain with the Army until 2010, when she joined the Department of the Air Force's civil service as the Deputy for Installation Support during the transformation of JBSA. In December of 2013, Ms. De Los Santos became the Executive Director to the Commander of the 502nd Force Support Group.

As Executive Director, she oversaw the group's budget and personnel across four military installations--JBSA Randolph, JBSA Lackland, JBSA Fort Sam Houston and JBSA Camp Bullis. Additionally, she was responsible for the base's Community Partnership for Transitioning Service Members, Military Spouses and Family Programs.

Throughout her career, Ms. De Los Santos received numerous awards and decorations, including the Senior Civilian Service Award, the Commander's Award for Civilian Service and the Meritorious Service Medal. Ms. De Los Santos was also a dedicated community servant. She helped create and maintain partnerships between the community and military, contributing immensely to the continued growth of San Antonio as Military City, U.S.A.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in celebrating the remarkable career of Ms. Serafina De Los Santos. Her leadership and commitment to our Nation will be long remembered and may future generations of leaders look towards her as a shining example.

Mr. Speaker, I want to share a statement on H.R. 2071, the Save Our Shrimpers Act.

Shrimpers in Texas and across the United States are facing real, serious challenges including rising fuel costs, aging equipment, and a workforce shortage as fewer young people enter the trade. These issues that threaten the future of our domestic shrimp industry deserve meaningful attention from Congress.

Regrettably, the Save Our Shrimpers Act does nothing to lower the cost of fuel or provide practical support to American producers. Instead, the bill offers a false promise to shrimpers in the United States by focusing on cutting off financing to some of the most impoverished communities in the world.

Texas shrimpers deserve better. I support growing the domestic shrimping industry and will continue working toward legislation that addresses the challenges our shrimpers face.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor the life and legacy of Ms. San Juanita ``Jane'' Gonzalez, who passed away on Saturday, March 28, 2026. A tireless advocate, Jane's commitment to the success of small businesses and underserved communities was celebrated by those who call San Antonio home. She is survived by her brothers, Rafael Gonzalez, Rogelio Gonzalez, and Rolando Gonzalez, her nephew Roland Gonzalez, and niece Brianna Gonzalez.

Born on February 16, 1960, to Margueritte and Rafael Gonzalez, Ms. Gonzalez was the oldest of four siblings. After graduating from Brackenridge High School, she continued her studies in San Antonio and earned her bachelor's degree in accounting from Our Lady of the Lake University. She would later earn a master's degree in finance from St. Joseph's University.

After pursuing a career on the East Coast and Houston, Texas, she returned to San Antonio in 2005 and founded MEDwheels along with her brother, Rolando, with the goal of supplying medical equipment to those in need. In moments of need, she would organize for underserved communities in San Antonio to receive lifesaving equipment and services.

In addition to her invaluable work with MEDwheels, Ms. Gonzalez was a tireless champion for the success of small businesses within San Antonio. She sought to ensure that local businesses continued to grow past the start-up stage and continued to expand the local economy by entering more markets and creating new jobs.

Ms. Gonzalez was a fighter in life and did not let her cancer diagnosis stop her from helping others. I am grateful for her years of service to our San Antonio community.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in recognizing the incredible life and legacy of Ms. Jane Gonzalez. May her memory and commitment to serving others continue to inspire us all.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the incredible life and legacy of Dr. Manuel P. Berriozabal, who passed away on April 15, 2026, at the age of 94. A trailblazing educator and mathematician, Dr. Berriozabal dedicated his life to ensuring students had opportunities to succeed in and out of the classroom.

From an early age, Dr. Berriozabal took great interest in mathematics and soon dedicated himself to the pursuit of academic excellence. Dr. Berriozabal's rigorous commitment to his studies resulted in him earning a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Rockhurst College in 1952, a Master of Science in Mathematics from the University of Notre Dame in

1956, and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1961.

In 1976, after teaching at UCLA, Tulane University, and the University of New Orleans, Dr. Berriozabal returned to the city he was born in when he joined the faculty at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA).

In 1979, following the publication of an article disparaging Mexican American students' abilities in what would become known as the STEM fields, Dr. Berriozabal founded the Prefreshman Engineering Program (PREP). PREP is a summer program designed to provide middle and high school students with the opportunity to take college-level engineering coursework. Since the program's inception, over 50,000 students across San Antonio and beyond have participated in the enrichment program, launching their own academic journeys and disproving preconceived notions of limitations. Dr. Berriozabal served as the program's director for 25 years with an unshakable, multigenerational dedication to expanding opportunities for community growth and development.

Throughout Dr. Berriozabal's storied career, he received numerous prestigious awards, including the Yuehin Gung and Dr. Charles Y. Hu Award for Distinguished Service to Mathematics, and was a charter member of the Texas Science Hall of Fame.

Dr. Berriozabal is survived by his wife, the Honorable Maria Berriozabal. The two met in 1972 and married in 1975. They shared over 50 years of marriage together, supporting each other as they selflessly gave back to the San Antonio community.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in recognizing the incredible life and remarkable legacy of Dr. Manuel Berriozabal. He was a servant, leader and inspiration to many and I am grateful for his commitment to the San Antonio community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Mr. Roy Ramiro Barrera, Sr., who passed away on Sunday, March 15, 2026. A legal giant in San Antonio and across the state of Texas, Mr. Barrera helped pave the way for Hispanic excellence in the legal profession. He is survived by his children, Yolanda Barrera Arellano, Roy Barrera, Jr., Gilbert Barrera, Carmen Barrera Ramirez, and Robert Barrera, along with many beloved grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

As a child, Mr. Barrera demonstrated an undeniable work ethic and worked numerous jobs throughout the San Antonio community. While in high school at San Antonio Vocational and Technical School, Mr. Barrera met Carmen Zendejas, where the two sparked a relationship that would last over seven decades, including 67 years of marriage.

Upon graduation from San Antonio Vocational and Technical School in 1944, Mr. Barrera joined the U.S. Army and served in the Asiatic- Pacific Theater during World War II. While overseas, he received two overseas service bars and a good conduct medal.

Following his honorable discharge in 1946, using G.I. Bill benefits, he enrolled in the St. Mary's University School of Law. He would go on to earn his Juris Doctorate in 1951. That same year he joined the Bexar County District Attorney's Office as an assistant district attorney. In 1957, at the age of 28, he argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in Alcorta v. Texas. In that same year, he and fellow prosecutor, Anthony Nicholas, started their own firm, Nicholas & Barrera.

As Mr. Barrera built his legal career, in 1968, Texas Governor John Conally appointed him to become the first Hispanic Secretary of State. In 1973 he served as the first Hispanic President of the San Antonio Bar Association and remained a State Bar of Texas Foundation Fellow until his death. Mr. Barrera continued to practice law into his nineties, remaining a constant, invaluable resource for generations of attorneys.

Mr. Speaker, please join me in recognizing the incredible life and remarkable legacy of Mr. Roy Barrera, Sr. He inspired many. He was a true leader, and I am grateful for his decades of service to our San Antonio community.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Dr. Manuel ``Manny'' Berriozabal.

Manny was born in San Antonio, where he met his wife, Maria, and served our community for five decades.

After growing up in Independence, Missouri, he would go on to teach mathematics at UCLA, Loyola Marymount, the University of New Orleans, and Tulane.

Manny joined the UTSA faculty in 1976, and he was a force for change. He worked tirelessly to prepare and inspire generations of students to pursue math and science careers. He founded the Pre-Freshman Engineering Program, PREP, helping give over 50,000 alumni access to rewarding opportunities in STEM. That program is now in 33 sites across seven States.

Outside of the classroom, he fought for equity and opportunities for underserved communities, making our city a better place to learn and live.

He was also a longtime friend.

Madam Speaker, he believed in the power of education and community. His legacy lives on through countless students in San Antonio and across the country. May he rest in peace.

Mr. Speaker, the President promised the American people no more foreign wars. Then, he dragged the Nation into war with Iran. He has threatened genocide against Iran by calling for the death of a civilization.

This war has caused record inflation, soaring energy prices, and the death of countless civilians, including scores of schoolgirls. Americans didn't endorse any of this.

The so-called imminent threat that was used to justify the war was manufactured. In fact, Iran does not possess any nuclear weapons. They don't have a single ballistic missile capable of reaching the mainland United States of America.

This was all a lie. That lie has cost 13 American servicemembers their lives, and hundreds more have been wounded.

As we speak, President Trump is sending thousands more servicemembers into the region.

What was this war for? The President keeps changing his answer. How much will it cost? He refuses to say. When will it end? No answer.

Has he sent a single official to testify to Congress to explain his decision to go to war? No.

A vote against this resolution is a vote to sideline Congress in the most consequential decision a government can make, whether to go to war.

When we go home, in each of our hometowns, we are confronted with questions about higher grocery bills and why. The answer is this war.

I will tell people that I did not vote for this war. I will tell them that I don't support the war. I will tell them

that I voted to stop the war. I will tell them that I do not want another generation of American men and women from San Antonio or anywhere else in this country in uniform fighting 20-year, trillion- dollar wars in the Middle East. When you go home, what will you tell your people?

The resolution before us is a chance to show the American people that this body functions, that it works, that we will not stand aside while a President wages an unauthorized war.

Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted NAY on Roll Call No. 121.