Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, it is my distinct honor to recognize a true American Patriot, Mr. Dick Mann of Webster County, Missouri.

Mr. Mann began his career of public service in the United States Marine Corps, where he served in active duty from 1968 to 1974. From then until 1992, he served in the Army Reserves as a medic in a preventative medicine unit.

He continued his service to his community while serving as an Environmental Public Health Specialist and Emergency Planner from 2007 to 2013 for the Webster County Health Unit. In these roles, Dick was responsible for food and drinking water safety and quality, developing response and mitigation plans for large scale public health emergencies, and child daycare facility safety for Webster County residents. Since 2015, Dick has served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Webster County Health Unit.

Additionally, Mr. Mann has served as a community mentor for families struggling with addiction, the American Red Cross representative for Webster County, and as a member of the Local Emergency Planning & Disaster Management Committee.

I stand here today to congratulate Dick Mann on his retirement, to extend my gratitude for his many years of exceptional service to our community and to our great Nation, and to wish him the best of luck in his next endeavor.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Adult and Teen Challenge, or ATC, a faith-based organization serving on the front lines to combat our Nation's spiking drug and alcohol addiction crisis.

I am really proud that ATC, headquartered in the great State of Missouri, is providing lifesaving services to thousands of people afflicted by substance abuse disorders.

Daily, more than a dozen people reach out to ATC looking for help for themselves or a loved one, and ATC is always answering the call.

ATC has provided recovery care through Christ-centered solutions for more than 14,000 persons per month in the last year.

It is really time that we recognize the importance of faith in the addiction recovery and support process for those working to see addiction numbers decrease instead of increase.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Ava Lawless, a resident and constituent from my district in Missouri, and I am so honored to appoint her to the United States Air Force Academy.

Ava was my first appointee to a military academy, and we took in a lot--a lot--of qualified applicants on this one.

Ava is active, focused, and driven. She is going to the U.S. Air Force Academy, and she is proudly going to serve our great Nation.

She comes from a strong family. Her dad is, in fact, a graduate of the Air Force Academy. Her family instilled in her great dedication and a foundation of understanding and respecting our Nation.

They cultivated a real patriotism and passion for service, and her family taught her the value of hard work.

We are so, so very proud of Ava Lawless and her commitment to serving our Nation. I couldn't be more proud and honored to recognize her today as our first appointee to the United States Air Force Academy.

God bless you, Ava. God be with you, and we look forward to seeing you here on Capitol Hill some day.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in response to the President's State of the Union Address.

While the state of the Union was the focus last night, today, I am more concerned about the state of the President.

Just hours ago, the President of the United States stood in this very room right behind me and told one of the greatest tales that I have seen in modern history, attempting to tout optimism, curbed inflation, and a secure nation.

However, this failing, flailing, incompetent chief executive ran from the fact that he welcomed more than 4 million illegal aliens into our sovereign Nation, he reversed our energy independence, he let the Chinese spy balloon float entirely over our Nation with impunity, flying over Whiteman Air Force Base, home of the B-2 Stealth bomber.

The state of our Union is strong. The state of our President is weak.

We don't need more yelling, Mr. President. We need more healing in America.

Some 40 years ago, President Ronald Reagan said, It is time for us to reassert our trust in God. It is time for us to realize that we need Him more than He needs us. It is time to turn to God for the healing of America. Let's get about the business of healing America.

Mr. Speaker, my dad died 5 years ago. I think one of the most precious moments I remember with him as a child is going with him to vote back in the late 1960s, early 1970s, when the polling stations had the

boxes you would go in and the curtains would close and you would go in and pull a lever.

My dad wanted to make sure that we all knew, me and my three brothers, just how important voting was. It is not only our right; it is our responsibility as U.S. citizens.

Today, I rise in support of the rule, House Resolution 24. Free, fair, and trusted elections are the most sacred and the most essential part of our democracy for a healthy republic.

Unfortunately, the D.C. Council has tried to undermine the voice of American citizens who vote in D.C. by granting illegal aliens the right to vote. This is wrong. We know it is wrong. It jeopardizes the sanctity of our elections. Law-abiding U.S. citizens should not be disenfranchised by noncitizens voting.

Preserving the integrity of our elections could not be more important. We must trust the vote. We must protect the vote. We must ensure the highest level of confidence for all Americans.

If the D.C. Council allows illegal voters to exercise the right to vote, this would have massive affects across our Nation.

Where would it end?

Our Constitution has set forth the founding law which determines voting rights, and it could not be more clear. The 26th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution says: ``The right of citizens of the United States, who are 18 years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.''

The Constitution is clear, Mr. Speaker. The right to vote is a privilege reserved for U.S. citizens, not illegal aliens.

Let me continue to section 2: ``The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.'' That is what we are here today to do, with appropriate legislation, this resolution.

The right to vote is one of the most sacred rights we have. It is a bedrock of our society. It is a fundamental part of what we are as a Nation. We cannot throw this right away to the D.C. Council. We will not let it happen.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to support this resolution and join my colleagues to take a stand to protect the integrity of our elections, the right of every U.S. citizen, including my late father.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address the most critical national security threat our Nation is facing today: the Chinese Communist Party and their invasion of our U.S. airspace.

The recent Chinese surveillance balloon was allowed to fly unchecked from one end of our country to the other, reaffirming that the CCP is the top threat to our national security. I am beyond outraged at the fact that this administration has allowed this to happen.

Was he asleep behind the wheel of his Corvette?

Unfortunately, that does seem to be the case because this did not just occur for hours, it went on for days.

At the hands of this administration, the CCP was allowed to invade our airspace, and it happened right over our district, right over Whiteman Air Force Base, the home of the B-2 stealth bomber.

As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I will not back down until we get answers.

We cannot allow China to walk all over us and outpace us militarily. This administration continues to project weakness on the world stage, and it must end. We need answers. We must have a plan to stop the Chinese Communist Party's clear and blatant military aggression.

Mr. Speaker, I am deeply honored to be here today to recognize the life and the legacy of a great man of God named Fred Lamaster.

He died January 29 at the age of 92, a life well lived. He was born in Chicago. He graduated high school and went into the Marine Corps as a sergeant, and continued his education at the University of Illinois and Rockhurst University.

For 30 years, Fred worked for Pepsi in Kansas City and retired as a vice president and general manager. Fred wrote gospel tracks and distributed thousands of these, spreading the good news of Jesus Christ in his later years.

He also helped his son, and my good friend, Scott Lamaster, with his charity, taking it to the streets, feeding the homeless, and supporting first responders.

Fred leaves behind a wonderful legacy, a love for God, a love for his family, a love for this Nation, and a love for humanity.

Well done, sir. A good and faithful servant. We salute you.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a great man, Deputy J. Benezette from the Cass County Sheriff's Office who recently received the Life Saving Award.

Deputy Benezette was on his way home from an extra duty assignment at the sheriff's office and heard a dispatch call. An incident had happened nearby, and he answered that call for service.

Deputy Benezette got on the scene, where two motor vehicles were involved in an accident. One vehicle was completely overturned and had water pouring into it. With two people trapped inside and one struggling to keep her head above water, Deputy Benezette was able to quickly rescue both of them, saving a life and preventing a drowning.

His actions show dedication to duty under the most extreme circumstances, and he has been recognized with the Life Saving Award by his department.

Deputy Benezette serves Cass County and our Fourth District faithfully. He is a hero for our community and will be our guest at the State of the Union Address next week.

Mr. Speaker, I thank him and every member of our law enforcement community across America for the service they do for us.

Mr. Speaker, there seems to be a lot of confusion today, a lot of bewilderment, a lot of dismay from my friends on the other side of the aisle on exactly why we are here today.

I am here to tell you it is a shame we have to be here today, that we have to publicly put everyone on record to denounce socialism. I rise today in somber support of this resolution, a resolution to denounce the evils, the horrors of socialism.

Mr. Speaker, this is a somber issue because our Nation was founded on the principles of liberty and freedom, enshrined in our founding documents as the thesis of our very Nation.

However, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle here have made light of the horrors of socialism and at times have advocated for this radical ideology to the point that the youth of our Nation have been deceived.

They have begun falling away from the true ideals of the freedoms on which our Nation was founded, that being liberty and democracy.

Let me clear up some of this confusion for our good friends: This cannot happen. We can never let it happen again.

Socialism has created famine, mass murders, and the killing of over 100 million humans around the world.

Many of the worst crimes in history were committed by socialist ideologues: Stalin, Mao Zedong, Castro, Kim Jong-un, and Maduro.

Yes, I am here today to tell you that we also condemn categorically any form of socialism, including Vladimir Putin.

This history cannot be forgotten, as socialist regimes have indefinitely led to the destruction of personal liberties and are still a constant threat.

Future generations must be taught. They must understand the horrors of socialism.

So, we stand here today. It is a shame we have to be here to do this, to teach this lesson, to denounce the horrors of socialism, and to protect the freedoms of our great Nation and take a stand for personal liberty.

Our young people have been led astray. Our Nation has been blinded to some degree, and it is time to lift the scales off those blind eyes. It is time that every American take a stand.

It is time to tell the truth. The truth is the only thing that matters, and the truth is that socialism is evil.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 497, the Freedom for Health Care Workers Act.

Mr. Speaker, this is not about political points. This is about freedom. Our workers in the healthcare industry fight every day on the front line for us. These precious workers should never have been placed in this position to choose between a forced medical procedure and losing their employment.

Today, we are going to vote on this bill. I will tell you the story of Melissa Thomas from my district. Melissa lives in Cass County, Missouri. She is a nurse who has served her community for more than 40 years. When CMS, a government bureaucracy, implemented the vaccine mandate, Melissa was presented with three different outrageous choices: to fight for her job, to comply with the mandate, or be forced out of the medical field entirely.

Ultimately, Melissa fought. She was granted an exemption, but Melissa's story does not hold true for thousands

of frontline workers, workers who were forced out of their jobs, where they worked for years to protect us.

Today, I urge my colleagues to pass this bill to end this mandate, to take a stand. This is a stand for freedom.

Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor my Kansas City Chiefs for their AFC championship, and their berth in Super Bowl LVII.

Like many Missourians, I could not be prouder of the effort put forth on the field last night.

Despite having an injured Patrick Mahomes, injuries to several key players, incredible amounts of outside noise, and the referees against them the entire game, the Chiefs made short work of the ``Bungles,'' I mean, Bengals, and sent them off to the off-season.

While I hope Eli Apple has fun in Cancun, I also hope that mayor jabroni and the rest of the Cincinnati fan base learned a valuable lesson last night: It is called Arrowhead. It is the loudest, toughest place to play in the NFL with the strongest fan base.

A special thank you to Patrick Mahomes, Harrison Butker, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones, and, of course, Joseph Ossai for all their wonderful efforts last night. We couldn't have done it without you.

And to the Philadelphia Eagles, we will see you in Arizona. Go Chiefs.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a voice for the farmers and ranchers of Missouri's Fourth Congressional District and our Nation.

I promised to listen to their concerns and their needs, find real solutions, and serve their voice here in Congress. Today, I am proud to stand before you as I introduce our very first bill, the Amplifying Processing of Livestock in the United States Act. We call it the A-PLUS Act.

This is our first bill, and as a member of the House Agriculture Committee, I am dedicated to finding commonsense solutions for our farmers and ranchers, whom I represent.

The good people of Missouri have asked that we introduce this legislation, which releases the livestock industry from unnecessary and decades-old regulations.

The A-PLUS Act increases packer competition for livestock and meat processing capacity at the local level. It fixes local supply chain issues, and it supports small businesses.

I am committed to our farmers and our ranchers and will always serve their voice here in Congress.