Floor Statements

I thank the gentleman, the chairman, for yielding.

Mr. Chair, I rise in support of this fiscal year 2024 military construction and veterans affairs appropriations bill.

Despite some of the allegations from my friends on the other side of the aisle, this is a good bill. The budget process is not about how much you cut; it is about where you cut. That is what is important.

This bill is a good bill because it supports our veterans and our servicemembers. In fact, this bill fully funds President Biden's request for the VA and even exceeds the administration's request for military construction.

On top of that, the VA funding in this bill is $16.5 million more than the fiscal year 2023 enacted level--the enacted level. Let me repeat. This bill fully funds veterans' healthcare programs, period.

This includes keeping our promise that we just made to provide care to our toxic-exposed veterans, as we did last year through the Honoring our PACT Act.

I am also proud that we robustly funded military construction projects across the world, focusing on our barracks, our child development centers, to the tune of almost $800 million more than the administration's request.

This bill cuts wasteful spending, wasteful spending for programs that my constituents back home do not support, like critical race theory and

House Republicans, we are simply delivering on our promise to care for the men and women who serve this Nation.

I commend Chairwoman Granger and Chairman Carter for having put this bill together in a fiscally responsible manner. Yes, we have made some cuts, but they were responsible cuts. They were cuts that needed to be made. We cut the waste so that we could help our men and women who serve this country in uniform. I urge support of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Leslie and Carlton C. Smith for their high achievement in exportation. Leslie and Carlton's Jacksonville-based heavy equipment exporting business, Heavy Equipment Resources of Florida, or ``HERO FL,'' is a top exporter of components and spare parts to mining industries all around the globe.

Earlier this month, HERO FL was awarded with its second Presidential E Star Award for Exportation. This award is the highest honor given to our Nation's exporters and highlights HERO FL's significant contribution to U.S. exports and their development of market entry strategies for challenging international markets, specifically in Africa.

The E Star Award, which is now designated by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, sets HERO FL apart from their peers for their noteworthy export promotion efforts.

Just since 2013, HERO FL has grown from 10 export markets to over 32. This is an incredible achievement and is a testament to Leslie and Carlton's hard work in northeast Florida and across the globe.

I am honored to recognize their efforts, and I am grateful for the economic growth that they continue to bring to Florida's Fifth Congressional District.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman, again, for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend from Texas for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, the Second Amendment, which undergirds all the other amendments, is the only amendment in the U.S. Constitution to include the following four words: ``shall not be infringed.''

As a lifetime law enforcement officer and former sheriff, I have seen firsthand how law-abiding citizens using legal firearms protect themselves, their families, their neighbors, and other innocent persons from those who would do them harm. Mr. Speaker, any crime I have ever seen, I have never seen a stabilizing brace used.

While we are prioritizing safe gun ownership and work to keep firearms out of the hands of criminals and those with mental illness, the Federal Government shall not infringe on the rights of legal gun owners.

That means that the executive branch must not use this administrative rulemaking to rewrite the bounds of the Second Amendment--all without even a vote from Congress.

That, Mr. Speaker, is exactly what the Biden administration is trying to do. They legislate by fiat, through rulemaking.

Earlier this year, the ATF finalized a rule that redefines these pistols with attached stabilizing braces as a short-barreled rifle. After decades, they changed the interpretation.

Mr. Speaker, this insidious rule would turn millions of law-abiding gun owners--including many disabled veterans, as we have heard--who rely on these stabilizing braces into criminals simply for possessing firearms with a legal accessory.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to cosponsor this important resolution, and I urge my colleagues to support its passage.

Mr. Chair, like my good colleague here from Kentucky, I rise today to remind this Chamber that our Founders put Congress in charge of writing our laws, not unelected bureaucrats at Federal agencies.

Yet, since taking office, President Biden has signed more than 100 executive orders and insidious rules fast flowing from executive branch agencies creating miles of red tape and running up American taxpayers' tab by $1.5 trillion.

My constituents back home are struggling to make ends meet, and it is a direct consequence of this administration's misguided policies and their insidious rulemaking. It is past time that we put a stop to the President's abuse of executive power.

Last fall, House Republicans made a commitment to our constituents that this Congress would hold the government accountable. This week, with the REINS Act, we have an opportunity to show the American people that we are keeping that commitment.

The very first bill I cosponsored 6 years ago when I first came to Congress was the REINS Act. The REINS Act stops Federal agencies from legislating by fiat by requiring Congress to approve all major rules before they can be enacted.

This bill returns Congress' Article I legislative authority back to where it belongs, and it will protect hardworking, taxpaying Americans.

The REINS Act is a strong start, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentlewoman yielding me the time.

Mr. Speaker, as we move into National Police Week, I rise in support of two bills that will help make our officers safer out on the street. The first is H.R. 2494, commonly called the POLICE Act, which simply states that an illegal alien that assaults a police officer will be deported. Not might be; will be.

Currently, the situation is they can be arrested for assaulting, and in 2021 we had 43,000 law enforcement officers assaulted. I am sure many of those were by illegal aliens. Those numbers are just going to go up. They can be arrested, placed in a 287(g) jail facility where they are held for ICE, convicted of the crime of assault, but they still may not be deported. They have to go through a long legal analysis after their conviction to ensure that they are deported out of this country.

H.R. 2494, the POLICE Act, simply says if you assault one of our officers, we are kicking you out of this country. I can't imagine why anyone across the aisle would vote against that.

The other bill is H.R. 3091, the Federal Law Enforcement Service Weapon Purchase Act. Mr. Speaker, we have several of our Federal law enforcement agencies right now who are about to go through rearming their agencies to the tune of about 20,000 weapons. They are going to destroy these weapons if officers are not allowed to purchase their service weapon as it is being retired or as the officer may retire.

This bill simply says that we are going to take these officers that are retiring, and if they want to purchase their service weapon, they will be allowed to. Currently, they are precluded from doing that. All of these weapons are going to be destroyed; about $8 million worth. We are just going to destroy them, and the taxpayers are going to have to buy more.

As a 40-year law enforcement officer, I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, your sidearm is not just any old sidearm. There is a special relationship that you develop, and we need to allow these officers to purchase their firearms.

Madam Speaker, I appreciate this time as we have our bipartisan Special Order hour to honor law enforcement officers all across America to talk about our back the blue.

This evening, as we begin, I am joined by so many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who truly do support our law enforcement community. We are here to celebrate the lives and also honor the deaths of many of these officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Madam Speaker, as a career law enforcement officer, I know what our officers go through every day when they put on their uniforms, say good-bye to their families, and head out to do the important work of protecting their communities. They step into that breach between the good citizens that they have sworn to protect and that criminal element out there that would do them harm.

Unfortunately, over the last few years, we have seen an uptick in violence specifically directed at law enforcement officers, especially in the form of ambush-style attacks. These violent attacks have been fueled by antipolice rhetoric, which has left our officers demoralized and delegitimized.

In fact, according to the National Fraternal Order of Police, just this year, just in 2023 so far, 135 officers have been shot, 15 of those killed by gunfire. The number of officers shot in the line of duty is up 52 percent from this time 3 years ago.

Madam Speaker, there have been 38 ambush-style attacks on police officers, 38. In these attacks, 43 police officers have been shot. This country cannot tolerate this violence. We must respond with action to prevent further attacks against our police officers. I am grateful for my bipartisan colleagues who join me on this floor this evening to send a message that we have the backs of those officers who serve our communities.

This Congress, I am proud to have reintroduced three bipartisan bills to further support our law enforcement officers: The Invest to Protect Act, which will make critical investments in small police departments with fewer than 200 officers to help them with recruitment, retention, mental health support for their officers, and officer training. The Protect and Serve Act, which creates enhanced Federal penalties for individuals who deliberately target law enforcement officers in the line of duty. So if you target the police, Congress is going to target you. Then finally, the HELPER Act, which will help our law enforcement officers and other first responders buy homes within the community that they serve.

I am going to continue to advocate for legislation that supports and equips our men and women in blue. While we continue to work to support officers still on the job, we must also remember those who have laid down their lives in service to their communities.

Last week, I had the honor of commemorating Florida's fallen officers, including two in my own district. Paul Matthew Patrick was an Atlantic Beach police officer whose watch ended on September 12. He is a legacy. He died in 1932. Coby Brandon Seckinger is a St. Johns County deputy whose watch ended on December 14 of 2020.

Madam Speaker, it is vital that we never forget those who choose to walk out that door each day and face an unknown danger so that we don't have to. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: ``The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.''

This week we remember their sacrifice and use it as an inspiration to better support law enforcement officers across this Nation. I pray each and every person across America would live the rest of our lives worthy of their sacrifice.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), my good friend across the aisle, who is also co-chair of the Law Enforcement Caucus. I thank him for being here, and he knows about service. He has served in the Army, and he is now serving on the Ways and Means Committee.

Madam Speaker, although the gentleman and I may not agree on everything, we do agree on the Law Enforcement Equity Act. As a cosponsor, I hope we can get that over the line. I think that would do a great service to our law enforcement communities out there.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bacon). He is a retired U.S. Air Force general who knows all about service above self. He is also, I should say, one of the original cosponsors of the LEOSA Reform Act, which is certainly going to help law enforcement officers all across America.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), my good friend.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer).

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for coming with us and joining on law enforcement issues. He is one of the hardest workers across the aisle I know. I can't tell him how much I appreciate his friendship.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Johnson), who also knows about service above self. He is a retired United States Air Force lieutenant colonel, and I thank him for his service.

Madam Speaker, those are true words from the heart.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) again for an introduction.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Torres).

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for the comments tonight. I know, as a law enforcement officer, that our 911 dispatchers are so overlooked, I think, by our communities, what they do for those men and women out there on the streets.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her service, as well.

Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to introduce another law enforcement officer. He spent 23 years of his life serving Minnesota's Duluth Police Department. He is also an original cosponsor of the Protect and Serve Act.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Stauber).

Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Stauber for his service.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Grothman), my good friend and someone who has had a life of service himself in the State legislature at all levels.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his kind remarks.

Now, Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for any closing remarks he would like to make tonight.

Madam Speaker, I really do appreciate the work that we have been able to do on the law enforcement caucus serving together as co-chairs, and I look forward to the many more opportunities to come together and work. I thank everyone for making this Special Order hour bipartisan and recognizing our law enforcement officers are so very special.

Madam Speaker, I will close with this: As a law enforcement officer, my fundamental duty is to serve mankind; to safeguard lives and property; to protect the innocent against deception, the weak against oppression or intimidation, and the peaceful against violence or disorder; and to respect the constitutional rights of all men to liberty, equality, and justice. That is the opening of the Law Enforcement Officer's Code of Ethics.

If you go to the Law Enforcement Memorial, every officer whose name is etched on those walls lived by and died for that code. We remember them today. This whole week is about promises made and promises kept. We promised them and their families that they would never be forgotten.

This week we will keep that promise. I pray that we keep that promise every day, the rest of our lives. As I said earlier, I only pray that every person can live the rest of our lives worthy of their sacrifice.

General Leave

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in

which to revise and extend their remarks.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 8 o'clock and 39 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until tomorrow, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, at 10 a.m. for morning-hour debate.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, throughout my life, I have answered a call to public service. For 40 years I dedicated my career to serving in law enforcement--12 of which I led as sheriff.

I know from firsthand experience that every day law enforcement officers put their lives on the line when they put on their uniform and step out into their communities to keep us safe.

That kind of sacrifice is part of the commitment these officers make to protect citizens across the country and is essential to making our communities and neighborhoods safe.

Over the past few years, we have seen calls to defund the police sweep across this Nation, and we have heard Members of this very Chamber support efforts to demoralize and delegitimize the brave men and women who enforce our laws to keep us safe.

This has made it incredibly difficult for law enforcement officers to do their jobs--not to mention the liberal prosecutors and district attorneys who are failing to do their job to keep criminals off the street.

The results?

A spike in violent crime that has left cities less safe than they were 3 years ago.

I am proud that our House Republicans, led by Speaker McCarthy, are focusing on upholding law and order across America. House Republicans are committed to supporting our law enforcement.

That means helping agencies hire more police officers, opposing all efforts to defund the police, and cracking down on those prosecutors and district attorneys who have refused to do their jobs and prosecute crimes.

We recently voted to overturn D.C.'s soft-on-crime criminal justice reforms that reduced penalties for people who are committing crimes like carjacking and robbery.

Throughout my career in law enforcement, I have seen how failure to prosecute minor crimes leads to more serious violent crimes. We need to work with our leaders in law enforcement--work with them--not against them.

That is why I was proud to reintroduce the ` this week. This bill would provide small police departments, with fewer than 200 officers, the resources that they need to hire and retain the best officers, provide necessary training, and improve officer well-being.

Small law enforcement departments make up more than 96 percent of our local U.S. police departments. The Invest to Protect Act would simplify the grant process and give departments the flexibility to make meaningful investments in their officers and communities.

Part of making grants more accessible to law enforcement agencies is by removing strings to Federal money. I have been fighting against President Biden's efforts to empower the U.S. Attorney General to make training and policy decisions, moving local policing decisions from local sheriffs and local police chiefs to the Federal Government.

That is a very scary idea for someone who understands the importance of keeping policing local. The strength of America's domestic security lies in the diversity of our State and local law enforcement.

We can start by defunding sections 19 and 20 of the President's executive order on policing which require law enforcement agencies who receive Federal money to be accredited to standards that are set by the AG and to meet a list of policies, also decided by the Attorney General, before they are eligible for Federal grant money.

Any move to nationalize local law enforcement must be resisted at every turn.

Most importantly, we must do all we can to keep law enforcement officers safe while they are on duty. That is why I reintroduced the Protect and Serve Act again this year to strengthen penalties on criminals who violently target our law enforcement officers. We must hold these criminals accountable and show our officers that we have their backs.

As we mark National Police Week and remember those who gave their lives in service to their communities, we must come together to support policies that make our law enforcement officers' lives safer and more effective.

Together we can support law enforcement through sound policy and oversight and send the message that House Republicans are committed to passing critical legislation through the House, Senate, and the White House.

Mr. Speaker, 246 officers from the State of Florida: Officer Christopher Gibson, Detective Joseph Anthony Tripoli, Deportation Officer William Hayes, Trooper John Sumter Horton, Deputy Sheriff Bryan Vannatta, Officer Bart Lane Arnold, Officer Jesus Delaluz ``Chuy'' Lara III, Officer David Leroy Ingle, Officer Franklin Joe, Officer Bruce Eckhoff, Officer Richard Lynn Tostenson, Captain Reginald Kamal Smith, Sergeant Gerardo Morales, Deputy Sheriff Michael Queeney, Detention Sergeant Janell L. Visser, Officer Fernando Uriel Arroyos, Officer Diane Gonzalez, Corrections Officer V Mark A. Loecken, Officer Brian R. Shields, Deputy Sheriff Brian Dennis Moore, Chief Michael E. German, Deputy Sheriff Joseph Robert Tinoco, Captain Jeffrey Allen Pierce, Investigator Steven Ray Finley, Deputy Sheriff Terrance Nicholas Bateman, Sergeant Malek Z. Majzoub, Corrections Officer Melissa M. France, Detective James M. Ward, Corporal Ernest M. Robinson, Officer Ramiro ``Ray'' Perez, Sergeant Kenneth J. Thurman Sr., Officer Daniel J. Sanchez, Chief Don Riffe, Officer Corille Cortez Jones, Officer Tyler Lenehan, School Resource Officer Johnny Patterson, Detective Jason Rivera, Special Agent Anthony Salas, Lieutenant Kevin Pounders, Deputy Jailer Gregory L. Means, Corporal Charles Galloway, Sergeant Ramon Gutierrez, Detective Wilbert D. Mora, Officer Christopher Wayne Berry, Deputy Sheriff John L. Grampovnik, School Resource Officer Travis Hurley, Master Trooper Vince Arnold Mullins, Deputy Sheriff Noah Rainey, Deputy Sheriff Lorin Marie Readmond, Officer Donald Sahota, Senior Correctional Officer Robert F. McCormack, Master Patrolman William Daniel Kelley, Sergeant William Shibley, Sergeant Burke N. Hannibal,

Officer Chris Bardwell, Deputy Sheriff Laquintin J. Wilson, Officer John Painter, Master Police Officer David J. Nieves, Sergeant Arthur Duron, Deputy Sheriff Steve Bobbitt, Correctional Officer Helen Mae Smith, Sergeant Chris Jenkins, Captain Collin Birnie, Chief Richard Leslie Stephens, Deputy Sheriff Brian J. Norton, Sergeant Robert M. Miller, Officer Leonard Swanson, Special Deputy Marshal Jose Elizondo Gomez, Patrolman David Glen Evans, Detective Michael W. Godwin, Sergeant Joshua Caudell, Lieutenant Scott Brandon Owens, Correctional Officer Jose Ruiz, Deputy First Class Kenny Olander, Senior Officer Robert Eric Duran, Trooper Tamar Anoush Bucci, Officer David A. Mathura, Correctional Officer Lonnie D. Johnson Jr., Corporal Benjamin Lee Cooper, Officer Jake Alexander Reed, Officer Freddie Wilson, Officer Caleb D. Ogilvie, Deputy Sheriff Dominique Calata, Officer Lane Anthony Burns, Sergeant Barbara Majors Fenley, Trooper Martin Francis Mack III, Trooper Branden Tyler Sisca, Officer Dan Rocha, Officer Jeffrey Herndon Carson, Deputy Sheriff Douglas Warren Sanford, Investigator Donald Richard Crooms, Agent John Dale Stayrook, Corrections Employee Darrell Avery, Correctional Officer Braxton Hofman, Officer John Mestas, Correctional Officer John Baron Broadaway, Corporal Sheli Godbold, Corporal Michael R. Springer, Deputy Sheriff Aubrey Phillips, Corporal James Michael McWhorter, Correctional Officer Kay W. Zeger Jr., Officer Lonnie Sneed, Corporal Michael Keith Morgan, Sheriff Robert P. Craft, Captain Frank Keith Rezac Jr., Deputy Sheriff Jarett Oroszi, Corrections Deputy Bridgette Lachelle Hunter, Police Officer Nicholas Vella, Lieutenant Jason T. Dumlao, Sergeant Matthew Horton, Deputy Constable Neil Adams, Sergeant John Joseph Donohue, Correctional Lieutenant Steve Taylor, Officer Jorge David Alvarado Jr., Major Rodrick C. Covington, Officer Dominic M. Francis, Lieutenant William David Lebo, Deputy Sheriff Darren Almendarez, Police Officer Trey Marshall Sutton, Sergeant Christopher Michael Vaughn, Deputy Constable Jennifer Lauren Chavis, Patrol Officer Brian Lee Sember, Officer Darryl Wayne Fortner, Sergeant Pedro ``Tony'' Candia, Deputy Sheriff James ``Jerry'' Critchelow, Police Officer Roy Andrew Barr, Corporal David P. Jones, Deputy Sheriff Nicholas D. Weist, Sergeant Nicholas W. Tullier, Deputy Sheriff Walter Donald Jenkins Jr., Deputy Sheriff Robert Adam Howard, Border Patrol Agent Daniel Humberto Salazar, Chief Deputy Sheriff Jody Wayne Cash, Police Officer Stephen Charles Plum Jr., Supervisory Police Officer Yiu Tak ``Louis'' Tao, Senior Correctional Officer Daniel Sincavage, Correctional Officer IV Jade Drennan.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate St. John's County's Bartram Trails High School girls' soccer team for completing a remarkable 2022-2023 soccer season.

Last month, the team won their third Class 7A Florida High School Athletic Association title in just 4 years, earning them a spot at number one in the Nation.

Under Coach Jen Rodriguez' guidance, seniors Olivia Bori, Sophia Magdalein, and Reese Henley scored the winning goals in their final game and secured Bartram Trails' place as northeast Florida's first public school to finish unbeaten in girls' soccer.

This impressive record is a testament to the discipline, focus, and skill the team has demonstrated on the soccer field throughout their season.

I look forward to following along as they set new goals and break new records.

Mr. Speaker, all I have to say now is: Go Bears.

Recognizing Bill Rogers

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Bill Rogers. Bill has dedicated his life and creativity to developing safety equipment for some of our Nation's most highly skilled military and law enforcement elite tactical teams.

It all began in 1969 when Bill became the youngest candidate to be selected for the FBI Academy. After losing his handgun during a pursuit, Bill decided to craft his own holster, a product which he later named the Kydex Holster.

In 1973, he presented the holster to the FBI, and the agency went on to buy Kydex Holsters and integrate them for their agencywide use.

With his newfound success, Bill Rogers began the Rogers Holster Company and developed Rogers Shooting School to begin teaching gun use and safety skills.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Bill began working with the Department of Defense. He was training Navy SEALS, developing new styles of safety holsters, and accepting shooting school contracts from special operations units within the U.S. military and many international units. Many of these units continue to operate here today.

In 1980, Bill Rogers sold Rogers Holster Company to Safariland, which is a U.S.-based safety equipment manufacturer and actually helped create Team Safariland, the first professional team in action shooting sports.

Bill continued to expand his business by developing a series of competition holsters specifically designed for sporting use.

I met Bill in the late 1980s when I was the training commander for the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office as we were transitioning from wheel guns over to semiautomatic pistols. It was during that time that I asked Bill if he could help us to develop a holster with a locking mechanism, a retention holster.

Little did I know what would come of that, but I was struck by his humility in the face of such success and his ability to innovate firearm safety and training.

What I didn't know was that while Bill was developing this retention holster for the Jacksonville Sheriff's officers, he was simultaneously being commissioned by the U.S. Navy to train classes of Navy SEALS.

In 2017, Bill went on to contract with all five military branches, an incredible achievement and act of service to our Nation.

Hundreds of recruits have been skillfully trained and protected under his guidance. His security holsters and training methods have also saved countless law enforcement officers from one of the most common events an officer ever experiences on the job, and that is a perpetrator trying to take control of their gun.

If you look at any uniformed police officer today, it is very likely that that officer is wearing a Rogers retention holster.

As a lifelong law enforcement officer, I am honored to recognize Bill Rogers' contribution to our Nation and to the safety of our law enforcement officers.

On behalf of northeast Florida, we thank Bill for his continued work to keep our officers, our community, and our country safe.

Ensuring Parental Involvement in Education of Children

Mr. Speaker, today Congress passed legislation that guarantees parents have a right to be involved in their children's education and to hold their school administrators accountable.

At face value, this should not be a controversial bill. Yet, it passed with a slim majority of 213-208. It is a parents' bill of rights. Yet, 203 of my Democratic colleagues voted against affirming parental involvement in a child's education.

I would say I am surprised, but this opposition is just more of what we have already seen from Democrat leaders and the White House over the last 2 years.

A campaign against parents, characterized by unnecessary school closures, masks in the classrooms, DOJ repressing parents' rights to participate in school board meetings, and an effort to label concerned parents as domestic terrorists.

What do we have to show for 2 years of this kind of ``leadership''?

Reports of historic learning losses and higher levels of anxiety and depression in our school-aged children.

The fact that we even need legislation like this further proves how far we have come in this country. It is an unfortunate reality that there are individuals across this Nation actively questioning a parent's right to know what their child is exposed to in the classroom.

A teacher in Arizona has even suggested that because she has a master's degree, she is more qualified to make a judgment call on what children are taught in the classroom and the parents are the ones who need to be vetted before they can voice their opinion.

She even went so far as to say this: ``We must remember that the purpose of public education is not to teach only what parents want their children to be taught, it is to teach them what society needs to be taught.''

Mr. Speaker, I reject this idea that my children are her children. Call me old-fashioned, but I don't believe a parent's right to have a say in their child's life ends at the edge of the schoolyard.

Parents are the primary stakeholders in their child's education. I am proud to have voted for the Parents Bill of Rights Act today, which will ensure parents have the right to know what is being taught in schools and to see reading materials that are presented to their children; the right to be heard at school board hearings; the right to see school budgets and spending; the right to protect their child's privacy by prohibiting student data from being distributed to tech companies; and finally, the right to be updated on any violent activity that occurs at their school.

Opposition to these reasonable provisions is just more of the same government-knows-best attitude that has led us to where we are now.

I will put this plainly because this issue hits very close to home for me and for every American family, regardless of party affiliation.

The future of this Nation rests on the education of the next generation. While I believe that teaching is a noble profession and our educators deserve recognition for their service, there is not a world in which a loving parent should be separated from taking an active role in their child's education.

As a proud father and grandfather, I am committed to ensuring education decisions are made as close as possible to the classroom, so that the future of this Nation remains rooted in freedom for all, but it needs to be made with students, parents, and teachers.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 12 o'clock and 49 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until Monday, March 27, 2023, at noon for morning-hour debate.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of a giant of a man in Jacksonville and in northeast Florida, Mr. Harry Frisch.

Many knew Harry as a very savvy businessman and compassionate philanthropist, but I had the great privilege of getting to know him as a true friend. Harry was the epitome of the American Dream.

He was born July 5, 1923, in Vienna, Austria, and at age 14, he fled the Nazi takeover, traveling to Czechoslovakia and then later fleeing to Israel, where he worked as an auto mechanic and met his loving wife of 68 years, Lilo.

Harry and Lilo then relocated to Jacksonville--with their two sons, Ben and Karl--where Harry began working at his mother's fish business to make ends meet.

Through his diligent work ethic and his warm personality, Harry grew Beaver Street Fisheries into one of the largest seafood processors and distributors in the United States.

Harry's joy was contagious. He felt a deep sense of appreciation for all those who had helped him along the way and made a point of being authentic with everyone that he interacted with.

That is the attitude that helped him develop deep roots across northeast Florida and led him to give back wherever and whenever he could. Harry supported many local nonprofits, like the River Garden Hebrew Home, and several local hospitals, including the Mayo Clinic, St. Vincent's Hospital, and Baptist Hospital.

His reputation earned him a multitude of awards, including a place in the First Coast Business Hall of Fame.

Above all, Harry was a devoted son, brother, husband, father, grandfather,

and great-grandfather, and he was known to treat his Beaver Street Fisheries family as part of his very own family. He loved them, and they loved him.

At 99 years old, Harry lived a life of purpose and faith that sets an example for us all. His philosophy in life and business was: ``If you can't handle the business, you don't need to be in the business.''

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote: The purpose in life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have and make some difference that you have lived and lived well.

To the entire Frisch family, I will use Harry's favorite line, ``Let me put it to you this way'': Harry Frisch lived a life of immense and positive impact for an unmeasurable number of people. As Ralph Waldo Emerson would say, he lived well.

On behalf of Florida's Fifth Congressional District, I offer my prayers and sympathies to the Frisch family and his Beaver Street Fisheries family. Harry's life and legacy will not be forgotten.

A Nation Without Borders Is Not a Nation

Mr. Speaker, a nation without borders is not a nation.

Since President Biden took office, we have seen a record number of illegal border crossings at our southern border. This has led to more drugs and fentanyl entering the United States, increased crime, and a demoralized Border Patrol.

Instead of solving this crisis, the President and House Democrats have turned a blind eye. They continue to double down on their radical open borders policy that focuses on processing illegals faster and moving them throughout the country.

To this President, there is no crisis at the southern border. This is his policy--until now. We saw the President visit the border for the first time this month, and now the Biden administration wants to be focused on solving the issues at the border. Well, he is about 2 years too late.

Instead of taking responsibility for this national security crisis, the President is shifting blame to us here in Congress, claiming House Republicans have failed to take the necessary steps to defend our border.

Mr. Speaker, that is absolutely astounding. Since President Biden took office, CBP has recorded 4.5 million illegal border crossings. That doesn't include their estimated 1.2 million got-aways.

Under one-party Democratic leadership, ICE removed, last year, only 72,000 migrants, down from 186,000 removals in the final year of the Trump administration.

In December, under Speaker Pelosi's leadership, we saw a record for the most illegal crossings in a month, ever. The tenth month in a row, more than 200,000 immigrants were apprehended at the southern border.

How did the administration respond? By releasing more than 1 million people into the country's interior last year, only a third of which are under ICE supervision; by building an app for immigrants to schedule their illegal entry into the country; they responded by creating parole programs that bring tens of thousands of migrants into the country without a pathway to legal status; finally, by cutting ICE detention beds last budgetary cycle.

Eleven thousand beds were cut by ICE, decreasing our capacity to detain migrants, not because border crossings are down, but because, with this administration, negligence is preferable to accountability.

Make no mistake, we are in the middle of a historic border crisis because of President Biden and House Democrats.

During my trip to the border last spring, I met with discouraged Border Patrol agents overwhelmed by the influx of migrants attempting to cross our border, with absolutely no relief in sight.

While these agents do their best to handle groups of hundreds and sometimes thousands of people, the cartels are taking advantage of the holes in our border to smuggle in dangerous drugs like fentanyl and dangerous people. Hundreds of terrorists, known terrorists, on the watch list have come into this country.

Every State has now become a border State under this administration. By failing to enforce our laws and secure the border, this administration is incentivizing illegal entry and encouraging more people to come here and then overstay their visas.

This national security and humanitarian crisis has gone on long enough. Since I came to Congress, I have been fighting to secure our border, working with my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to help secure over $5.8 billion for a border wall since fiscal year 2017.

This Congress, House Republicans are committed to securing the border, ending catch and release, reinstating the remain in Mexico policy, requiring proof of legal status for employment, and eliminating welfare incentives.

We owe it to the communities that we represent to take these issues seriously and to hold this administration accountable. House Republicans will take the necessary steps to ensure America is a nation that is safe.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Kiley).

Celebrating School Choice Week

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to meet on Monday next, when it shall convene at noon for morning-hour debate and 2 p.m. for legislative business.

Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 2 o'clock and 58 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until Monday, January 30, 2023, at noon for morning-hour debate.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to give a voice to the voiceless all across our country and to speak out against the culture of death that has been perpetuated by the abortion industry here in America.

Our Founding Fathers enshrined in the Declaration of Independence the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I thought it very telling that our Vice President was speaking on this very issue just the other day, and she only mentioned two of those unalienable rights--only two of them. She left out life. I think she left out life because that is where we are at now. We talk about a culture of death, and we don't talk about life.

Our Nation cannot sit idly by as 1 million unborn children have this life taken from them every year--every year. This is advancing the normalizing of this culture of death.

Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to stand before you now and celebrate the fact that this culture of death is turning. The Supreme Court Dobbs decision doesn't end abortion in America, but by placing abortion decisions at the State level where it belongs, voters now have a greater voice in shaping our abortion laws. But that doesn't stop our resolve at the Federal level.

Throughout my time in Congress, I have fought to pass laws that respect life at every stage from conception to natural death and support both mothers and babies before and after birth.

Earlier this month, I proudly joined with my colleagues in the House to pass H.R. 26, the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which simply ensures that babies who survive failed abortions receive the same life-saving care that all babies who live can receive. It is amazing to think that we have to pass a law like this.

Last week, I joined Congressman Alex Mooney to again introduce the Life and Conception Act which recognizes the humanity and life of the unborn and ensures they receive equal protection under the 14th Amendment.

Mr. Speaker, whether we take a child's life in the womb or we take it at First and Main, that is simply geography. Life is our most precious gift from God, and it is our obligation to protect the most basic of rights for our next generation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a 95-years-young Walter Raymond Bowers from Jacksonville, Florida.

Walter was born March 16, 1927, in Dayton, Ohio. He moved to Jacksonville, Florida, as an infant and was raised by his maternal grandmother, Sadie Perry.

When he was 17, Walter joined the United States Navy and served in the Pacific theater during World War II where he earned the Philippine Liberation Ribbon, one star; the World War II Victory Medal; the American Campaign Ribbon; and the Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal, five stars.

After the war, Walter was assigned to the USS Pine Island and participated in Operation Highjump, which established the Antarctic research base known as Little America IV.

At the rank of boiler technician III 3rd class, Raymond Bowers was honorably discharged from the Navy on July 19, 1948. Just one week later, on July 26, 1948, he married Mary Dopson, the love of his life and mother of their three children: Walter, Jr., Margaret, and Paul.

Walter returned to Jacksonville and enlisted in the Naval Reserves where he served for 8 more years. He then began working for the city of Jacksonville road department where he spent 20 years of faithful service.

Walter and Mary both surrendered their lives to Christ in 1950, which led him to a new calling, one of a real ministry.

Walter joined A.B. Wainwright, and for 18 years they were planting and pastoring Pentecostal churches all across Jacksonville. Even after his professional retirement in 1968, Walter continued this ministry by planting a new church in Jacksonville's Dinsmore community. He started Wayside Assembly of God in 1973 where he served as senior pastor for more than 32 years.

His commitment to our Lord Jesus, his family, his community, and his country have contributed to this incredible legacy. May God continue to richly bless Walter for his amazing life of selfless service.