Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4, the Rescissions Act of 2025.

For decades, Americans have been waiting for their leadership to deliver on the promise that fiscal responsibility was on its way.

Wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars has been overlooked for far too long. For far too many years, leaders have kicked the can down the road, hoping a future Congress would make the hard decisions required to stop the financial bleeding.

As a proud Hoosier, I know that if we are doing our best to live within our means as a family, the government should do no less.

Congress must deliver on the promise of safeguarding American taxpayer dollars. I am proud to vote today to make this first initial step to eliminate wasteful government spending.

The Department of Government Efficiency did our country a great service in lifting the veil on how much fraud, abuse, and terrible waste of taxpayer dollars is truly happening in our government agencies.

By passing the Rescissions Act today, I join my colleagues in showing Americans that we hear them and we know that this change must be made. It is high time we work toward getting our fiscal house in order, and this is the first step.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the 200th anniversary of the Log Inn, a Gibson County landmark located on the outskirts of Haubstadt, just north of Evansville, Indiana.

This great restaurant put down its roots in 1825, and bore witness to Indiana's early growth, first as a trading post and a stagecoach stop between Evansville and Vincennes.

On its bicentenary, the Log Inn is vaunted for hosting not just the Hoosier patrons that make up our community, but also importantly, Amenca's 16th Commander in Chief, President Abraham Lincoln.

Furthermore, it once served as a stop on the Underground Railroad and is recognized as the oldest restaurant in Indiana.

Today, this monumental testament to the incredible history of our community serves Hoosier families daily as they enjoy both the great history of the Log Inn, and the delicious food it provides.

I celebrate the Log Inn for all its contnbutions to Indiana's 8th Congressional District, and I look forward to its continued success.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Valerie Nelson, who today marks 20 years of selfless service in the United States House of Representatives. Her unwavering commitment to public service has not only benefited this institution, but it has set an example for generations of congressional staff to come.

Val first entered federal service as an executive assistant to her home state Congressman Jim Ramstad of Minnesota, serving in his Washington D.C. office to support his legislative efforts. She later joined the leadership office of Congressman Eric Cantor where she served as Member Services Director. In this position, Valerie served as a vital link between the Republican Conference and the Whip's office. When Congressman Cantor became Majority Leader, Val continued in this key role during a critical time in our conference's history.

Upon his retirement, Val stepped away from Capitol Hill for a well- deserved break and time in the private sector but in 2021, Val was recruited back to the Hill to serve as Communications Director for Appropriations Chairwoman Kay Granger.

In that role, Val was instrumental in supporting the Chairwoman's priorities by ensuring they were clearly and effectively communicated. She worked closely with Chairwoman Granger, committee staff and senior personal office staff to help shape messaging and communicate key initiatives to both the broader public and the constituents of Fort Worth. She later went on to serve as Deputy Chief of Staff.

Her relationships across the Hill--built over two decades of trusted service--have already opened doors and helped my freshman office hit the ground running. Being a new Member of Congress comes with plenty of unknowns, but thanks to Val's steady leadership, these first few months have been marked by order, effectiveness, and forward momentum. Since taking office, I've relied on Val to help build a strong team and good culture that ensures we are delivering results for the people of Indiana's 8th District. The 119th Congress will be one for history books, and Val will be responsible for many of the core contributions that my office adds to that record.

It is my honor and privilege to recognize Valerie Nelson for her 20 years of public service in the House of Representatives. Few staffers reach this milestone, and even fewer do so with the level of dedication, professionalism, and grace that Val has consistently shown. We are all better for her service, thankful for her selfless dedication--and I'm truly grateful to have her on my team.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor my constituent Raymond Farabaugh, Co-President of D-Patrick, Inc. in Evansville, Indiana, who was named the 2025 TIME Dealer of the Year at the National Automobile Dealers Association Show in New Orleans, Louisiana. This prestigious award reflects the dedication, hard work, and commitment of the entire team at D-Patrick. Mr. Farabaugh was chosen among a field of 49 national dealer nominees and was selected by a panel of judges from the Tauber Institute at the University of Michigan.

Mr. Farabaugh graduated with a B.S. in psychology from the University of Dayton. Ten years after his graduation, he had the opportunity to start as the finance manager at his father-in-law's Honda dealership. He moved to different dealerships within the group and rose from sales manager to general manager. In 1998, Mr. Farabaugh and his brother-in- law purchased the dealership and now share ownership and responsibilities at D-Patrick.

D-Patrick has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in an array of local Indiana organizations, such as Ark Crisis Children's Center, Boone County Cancer Society, Boys & Girls Club of Evansville, Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Ohio Valley, Special Olympics Indiana, Tri-State Food Bank and Walk to End Alzheimer's Southwest Indiana.

Mr. Farabaugh is a member of the Automobile Dealers Association of Indiana, where he has served as President and currently as a member of the Board of Directors.

Mr. Farabaugh was nominated for this award by Marty Murphy, Executive Vice President of the Automobile Dealers Association of Indiana. I congratulate Mr. Farabaugh on this outstanding honor of being named the 2025 TIME Dealer of the Year. I commend him for all his contributions to the community and wish him and his family's business continued success.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to give my personal congratulations to the South Knox girls' basketball team for taking the Class 2A State championship. In the stunning 55-33 win, the South Knox Spartans earned the school's first statewide championship victory.

Basketball is a foundational part of our identity as Hoosiers, and they even gave us a term, ``Hoosier Hysteria,'' to describe just how seriously we take this sport and how many top players we produce.

Congratulations once again to the girls' basketball team at South Knox and to Coach Hollie Eaves for showing everyone just how well they play basketball in Verne, Indiana.

Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of the DETERRENT Act.

This important legislation will bring vital transparency and accountability to gift reporting requirements for colleges and universities.

For decades, the Chinese Communist Party, Iran, and Russia have targeted America's college systems by pushing dangerous propaganda aimed at influencing impressionable students.

As my colleagues have pointed out, many American universities have been far too cozy with our international adversaries. They accept generous investments masked as research projects and infrastructure opportunities, which turn out to be funded by regimes that wish to do us harm.

Not only did those corrupt arrangements create dangerous environments for our students and faculty, they also put America's national security at risk.

I am pleased that my bill, the INSTRUCT Act, is included as one of the DETERRENT Act's main provisions. My legislation requires that colleges and universities disclose to American intelligence agencies any and all financial investment data so we can ensure they remain free of the exploitation of hostile foreign influences.

I urge my colleagues to pass this bill, not just because it makes sense, but because it will put our adversaries on notice that we are watching them. Most importantly, it will protect our Nation's students from foreign manipulation and provide them with the transparent and safe learning environment that they deserve.

Again, I wish to thank Chairman Walberg for his leadership on this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Walberg for yielding the time, and I thank Congressman Steube for introducing this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Protecting Women and Girls in Sports Act and would like to clarify a comment from the gentleman on the other side of the aisle that as majority leader of the Indiana Senate, we easily overrode the Governor's veto of our State law protecting women in sports.

Since the passage of Title IX in 1972, female participation at the high school and collegiate level has risen dramatically.

Competitive sports are very important to the students and families in Indiana's Eighth District and all athletes around this great country.

The Biden administration's recent attempt to rewrite and reimagine Title IX is threatening to erase more than 50 years of progress and women's rights and equal opportunities for all female athletes.

It is a simple fact of life that men and women are biologically different and that men and boys have levels of strength that women and girls do not have.

Allowing men to compete in women's sports is unfair to the women and girls, and it takes away their chances to receive scholarships and be recognized and rewarded for their hard work, skills, and accomplishments.

Over the last couple of years, we have all watched in disbelief as top female athletes are losing their hard-earned titles to biological males who are competing as females.

Americans are also horrified to learn about the injuries women and girls are facing when in competition with a biological male.

As a father and a grandfather, I am entirely against forcing anybody's daughter or granddaughter to have to share a women's locker room with anyone other than women and girls.

The results of the November election have made it clear that Americans agree with me and my colleagues.

It is time for a change back to the way things were intended to be. Title IX was created to protect equality and opportunity for women and girls in sports. Thanks to this legislation, we will go back to doing just that.