Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, today we congratulate Peter Chacko from San Antonio who won this year's Congressional App Challenge for the 21st District of Texas.

Every year, the Congressional App Challenge encourages students to create an original app by writing computer code. As Chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, I take part in this competition, which inspires students across the country to explore computer science and search for innovations.

Peter won this year's competition by designing an app called PR Trackr. It helps runners calculate their pace and logs their runs. He developed the app because he and his cross country teammates needed a quick and effective way to assess and store their pace and monitor their progress.

Congratulations to Peter on his achievement. I know he will do well in his academics and future cross country races.

Mr. Speaker, the liberal media helped elect a U.S. Senator from Alabama. Their alliance with the Democratic Party is now so close, we should call them mediacrats. Admittedly, the mediacrats got an assist from some Republicans, as well as the candidate himself.

The primary lesson to be learned from the election is that Republicans must confront media bias. They must constantly point it out and remind the American people of this corrosive effect on our election process. Republicans should join the President exposing fake news.

The media should trust the American people with the facts, not tell them what to think. Because the media is so biased, their credibility with the American people is at an all-time low.

For the sake of our country and for the sake of fair elections, I hope the media will return to their paramount responsibility: providing the American people with unbiased news.

Mr. Speaker, according to a new Quinnipiac poll, 58 percent of Americans disapprove of the media's coverage of the President. Only 38 percent approve. It is no surprise why the American people disapprove of the media's coverage.

A few weeks ago, CBS Evening News ran a lengthy story mocking President Trump for taking a sip of water during the middle of a speech.

To date, the broadcast networks of ABC, CBS, and NBC have spent over 12 hours on an unproven Trump-Russia connection while only devoting 4\1/2\ minutes to the Clinton uranium scandal involving Russia.

Newsweek published a headline accusing Ivanka Trump of plagiarism because she used a sentence from a previous speech. Newsweek should check the dictionary. It is not plagiarism if you use your own words.

These are only three of many examples that account for why 58 percent of Americans disapprove of the media's coverage. Their liberal bias is on display for all to see, and Americans are tired of it.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the Latina Leadership Institute (LLI) in San Antonio, Texas, for the good work they are doing in San Antonio to train, educate, and encourage the next generation of Hispanic women who aspire to public office.

LLI's mission is to increase the number and influence of Hispanic Women in elected and appointed office positions in the United States. This is a noble and worthwhile mission and I am proud that this organization is located in my hometown of San Antonio.

The LLI program is highly personalized to each woman's individual goals and endeavors. Program participants are encouraged to get outside their comfort zones and build key leadership skills and experiences that will equip them for public office in the future. It is an excellent model for other cities around the country to emulate as they seek to elevate young women into political leadership roles.

The local governments of San Antonio and Texas, as well as the federal government, will benefit from the aspiring leaders being trained and encouraged by the Latina Leadership Institute.

Mr. Speaker, the Pew Research Center recently studied how the media covered the first 60 days of each recent administration. Not surprisingly, 62 percent of the media coverage of President Trump was negative, compared to 20 percent for President Obama and 28 percent for Presidents Bush and Clinton.

As Investor's Business Daily put it: ``The media from the get-go had decided Trump was a bad President--before any of his policies had a chance to take hold.''

Now that his policies have taken hold and improved the economy, the media still does not want President Trump to succeed. You have seldom heard or read a word about our strong economic growth, the record- breaking stock market, high consumer confidence, and the record-high household income.

The liberal media seldom highlight this news because they would have to credit President Trump's successful policies. When the liberal media give the American people the facts and present the news objectively, they will have earned our trust. Until then, they just serve as another biased source of information.

Mr. Speaker, a recent Washington Post University of Maryland poll asked Americans whom they blame for causing dysfunction in the U.S. political system.

It is no surprise that 88 percent of respondents said the news media caused some or a lot of the dysfunction. Given that the liberal media unfairly blames President Trump for nearly all the problems in our country, they bear the burden of this dysfunction.

Months of liberal biased reporting have shredded the media's credibility in the eyes of most Americans. The media should report the facts objectively. That begins with fair coverage of the President and his administration. So far this year, the media has been anything but fair.

According to a new Harvard study, media coverage of the President's first 100 days was 80 percent negative, a

record for recent Presidents. Until the media becomes less slanted, they will continue to be a source of dysfunction in our political system.

Mr. Speaker, I have a message for the liberal so- called mainstream media.

You are essential to democracy. You have an almost sacred responsibility to inform the American people, but they don't believe you anymore.

Your coverage of the President and conservative Republicans is now obviously so slanted, so biased, that you have lost your credibility; in fact, polls show that it is at a record low.

In trying to destroy this President, you are destroying yourself. Is that what you want?

Remember the Chinese proverb: ``When you set out on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.''

Why not trust the American people with the facts and let them make up their own minds rather than telling them what to think? I don't know of

any other way you can restore your credibility.

Mr. Speaker, a front-page story in Roll Call about Chief of Staff General Kelly is as misleading as you can get. It clearly is an intentional hit job.

The headline read: ``Kelly's Antics Rankle Capitol.'' The article claims, ``GOP and Democratic Members are united'' in not wanting General Kelly to speak out. But only one Republican, known for his criticism of this administration, is quoted, compared to four Democrats. Of the four Democrats, three are current Members of Congress, and one is a former Clinton administration official.

So much for balance, and so much for the article's unfounded claim. This is what passes for journalism these days. When you see stories like this one, you begin to understand why the President is right to use the term ``fake news.''

I doubt General Kelly will be intimidated, and I hope he will continue to speak out.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the House Judiciary Committee approved the Legal Workforce

Act, a bill I introduced that saves jobs for citizens and legal workers. It requires U.S. employers to use the E-Verify system to check the work eligibility of all future hires.

A September 2017 Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that 82 percent of voters favor requiring business owners to check the immigration status of prospective employees.

E-Verify is the most popular immigration reform that reduces illegal immigration. E-Verify is a free and quick system that already is used voluntarily by employers to cover one-third of the workforce.

The Legal Workforce Act has the backing of both national business organizations and immigration enforcement groups. This bill deserves the enthusiastic support of all Members of Congress who want to put the interest of American workers first.

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to thank the chairwoman of the Budget Committee for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, we need to pass this budget not only to rein in out-of- control spending, but also to give Congress the go-ahead on much-needed tax reform.

We need to reduce the tax burden on hardworking Americans. The typical household in the 21st Congressional District of Texas pays over $15,700 in Federal taxes. Past experience shows that tax relief generates strong economic growth. It enables Americans to save, invest, create jobs, and spend more of their income.

Our vision of tax reform benefits families across America. For example, in my congressional district, one-sixth of households utilize the child tax credit. Increasing the child tax credit will help families keep more of their hard-earned money to use on child care or parental leave, school supplies, college savings, and other expenses associated with raising a child.

Let's help American families enjoy a more prosperous future rather than pay more of their hard-earned dollars to the Federal Government.

Mr. Speaker, a recent Morning Consult poll found that nearly half of all voters--46 percent--``believe the media fabricates news stories about President Donald Trump and his administration.''

It is not surprising that the American people feel this way. Each day they wake up to another barrage of negative reporting about a President they elected.

In fact, a recent Harvard University study found that news coverage of President Trump's first 100 days was 80 percent negative, a record high for any recent President.

The news media used anonymous sources to report illegitimate claims that intentionally placed the President and his administration in a bad light. This is borderline malicious.

The liberal media frequently rushed to print stories with one single biased source. Often, the stories turn out to be false. This is the current state of journalism by the liberal media.

The media should report on the topics of the day in a fair and balanced manner; otherwise, the American people will continue to consider the media's coverage to be fabricated news.

Mr. Speaker, tomorrow is Jennifer Young Brown's last day as Chief of Staff of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee. For more than 28 years she has helped me represent the residents of the 21st District of Texas and, more recently, helped the Science Committee enact numerous policies that benefit the American people.

Jennifer started working in my personal office after she graduated from the University of Colorado. She has held five different positions, including Chief of Staff. For several years, she served as COS both in the personal office and on the Science Committee, a rare double COS, before becoming the full-time Science Committee Chief of Staff in 2016. Her talents and skills are many. She has mastered the difficult art of multi-tasking--no one does it better.

Jennifer is simply a remarkable woman. She manages to balance well the demands of husband, children, school activities, Science Committee work, and friends, almost 200 of whom attended a reception for her yesterday.

If Jennifer is going to leave us, at least it is for a worthy cause-- Texas Tech University. Over the years Texas Tech has supplied our office with impressive interns and graduates and even made me an honorary alumnus.

Jobs may end but friendships continue. Jennifer and her family-- husband Barry, son Leighton, and daughter Gipson--will always be special friends and I know I will continue to see them often.

So Jennifer, I thank you for all you have done for me. Her family is fortunate to have her as a role model. And I am fortunate to have had her influence on my life for over 28 years.

As I've learned to say, ``Go Raiders.''

Mr. Speaker, a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll professed to find that a majority of Americans supported amnesty for illegal immigrants. That is not hard to do, given how the survey was conducted.

The polsters asked to speak only with the youngest adult at home; over-sampled Democrats by at least 4 percent; used the word ``undocumented'' rather than ``illegal;'' questioned illegal immigrants, at least 3 percent of the population; and conditioned amnesty on requirements that can't be met.

Other than that, I am sure it was an accurate poll.

Beware of polls done by liberal media organizations that have an agenda of their own. The American people may not be getting the facts. They deserve better.

Mr. Speaker, you may have heard of Colin Kaepernick, the football quarterback who started ``the kneel'' to protest the national anthem at NFL games. He was the originator of the resistance movement in the NFL against police officers. But you likely haven't heard that he donated $25,000 to a group that was named after a convicted cop killer.

Neither national broadcast stations nor major daily newspapers reported the donation to an organization honoring Assata Shakur, who escaped prison and fled to Cuba after being found guilty in the 1973 murder of police officer Werner Foerster. Assata is currently on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list.

Why did the liberal national media think this story was not newsworthy? Do they agree with Kaepernick? Do they approve of contributions to organizations named after cop killers?

The liberal national media seems to have a grudge against law enforcement and patriotism, as well as religion and traditional values, based on their lack of fair coverage of those subjects. This might explain why the media's credibility is at a record low.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Webster) for yielding me time and for introducing H.R. 2105, the NIST Small Business Cybersecurity Act.

This important and timely bipartisan bill, cosponsored by 17 Members of Congress and approved by the Science Committee by voice vote, directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology to provide small businesses with cybersecurity guidelines, tools, best practices, standards, and methodologies necessary to better protect themselves from cyber attacks.

Small businesses help produce a thriving economy that benefits our entire country. They bring innovative ideas, cutting-edge products and services, and jobs to the marketplace. In my home State, for example, there are more than 2.4 million small businesses that employ almost 4.5 million Texans.

Major cyber attacks dominate news coverage, such as the Equifax or Yahoo hacks that impacted millions and billions of people. But small businesses, which often do not have sufficient information to adequately monitor and protect their computer systems, are frequently the target of cyber attacks, as well.

A 2016 Symantec report notes that cyber attacks against businesses with fewer than 250 employees have grown from 18 percent in 2011 to 43 percent in 2015. This bill can help those businesses.

October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, so it is appropriate that we consider a bill designed to help protect small businesses from cybersecurity attacks. Today's legislation provides small businesses with NIST expertise to reduce their cybersecurity risk.

NIST experts developed a cybersecurity framework through collaboration between the government and the private sector. This framework is accepted and used by many private organizations to address and manage their information technology vulnerabilities in a cost- effective way.

The guidance described in this bill to help small businesses is based on the NIST cybersecurity framework. H.R. 2105 prioritizes dissemination of this guidance by NIST within its almost $1 billion budget.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to show their support for small business by approving Mr. Webster's fiscally responsible, innovation protection bill today.