Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to say:

No to endless wars.

No to a President who breaks the law daily.

No to a Republican Congress that is so weak and so spineless that they refuse to stand up.

No to Congressmen and -women who refuse to do their jobs.

No to a Republican Congress that is attempting to rob the American people of healthcare, food, and public lands.

No to lawmakers who refuse to speak out as this administration undermines the rule of law, due process, and American democracy.

No to Members of this Chamber who have been so kowtowed by Donald Trump that they are failing to stand up for the American people, their own people who elected them in good faith and sent them here to defend this country and uphold the Constitution and the rule of law.

We say no.

Mr. Speaker, I stand here today as Donald Trump has taken us to the precipice--the precipice of war, a constitutional crisis, and millions living in fear and marching in the streets.

Mr. Speaker, 3 days ago, the President ordered a unilateral military strike against Iran and notified the majority of Congress and the American people, essentially, by tweet, using a social media post on Truth Social.

Days later, the world is in chaos because we have a President who is acting unilaterally. Authoritarianism is on the rise across the planet, and a region has been destabilized by conflict and violence, putting millions of people at risk, not only in this country but across the world.

American troops are in harm's way.

Iran is seeking help from our adversaries in Russia.

To date, we have had exactly zero--zero--briefings here in this Chamber from the President or the White House about their strategy or intent, or on what they know, what they planned, and how they are going to protect our troops, our bases, and the American people.

This follows on days of Donald Trump attacking the American people on our own soil by deploying United States marines, as combat troops, and the National Guard against our own people.

His own DHS Secretary and Federal agents handcuffed and pushed a United States Senator to the floor.

His U.S. attorney indicted a United States Congresswoman from this Chamber for doing her job.

A New York City official was arrested in a Federal courthouse.

I ask my colleagues: Is this the America that you swore your oath to and that you raised your right hand to defend, an America where the President is making hundreds of millions of dollars in a cryptocurrency bribery scheme; an America where the President is soliciting foreign governments for private gifts, including a $400 million jet in exchange for favors; and who is systemically dismantling programs that feed and house our people? He is trying to gut our healthcare systems and saddle generations of our people with trillions of dollars in debt so that he and his billionaire friends can have a few more tax breaks and a few more toys in their collection.

Is that what you stand for? Is that why you ran for office? Is that what the GOP and the Republicans in charge of this Chamber ran for and stand for?

You are the people who decide what moves on this floor and hold the keys to accountability. You are the ones who know that what is happening right now is wrong.

I ask how you can sit idly by and watch as your President dismantles the systems that uphold our democracy and the rule of law.

How can you sit here and watch as he recklessly deploys the military at home and abroad, threatening the safety and security of our people?

How can you sit idly by and watch as children starve across the world, including in Gaza and Sudan?

How can you justify a man who cozies up to our foreign adversaries and turns his back on our allies?

It does not have to be this way. You control this Chamber. You decide what happens, and Donald Trump is not a king.

I call on my Republican colleagues to find your backbones, find your moral compass, find your resolve, do what is right, and do your jobs.

I say to the American people: Keep marching. Keep speaking.

Mr. Speaker, Republicans in the Senate are trying to steal our public lands.

Unsatisfied with stealing our healthcare and food out of the mouths of millions of children, they are now coming for our public lands, lands we fish, hunt, and camp on, lands that have been sacred to our Tribes since time immemorial, lands that are integral to our communities and our land grants, lands that have nurtured us and make us who we are as Americans.

We are here to say ``no.'' This is a fight we can and must win.

To every American out there listening, call your Senator. We must save our public lands.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose this harmful, shameful, and offensive rescission package.

The GOP is canceling $9.4 billion, yes, billion, in funding for programs that fund lifesaving work across the world. It is funding for public television and public radio, for agriculture and research jobs, in my own district, and to codify the DOGE cuts that two-thirds of Americans oppose. Our own President asked his other Cabinet members, just 2 weeks ago, if they were just total bullshit. That is a quote of the President of the United States.

Mr. Speaker, I am here to tell Members of this Chamber to vote ``no'' on this rescission package.

Transmitted by the director of the Office of Management and Budget and architect of Project 2025, Russell Vought: This package would make permanent cuts to USAID and the State Department which was put into motion illegally. They knew it because they were impounding funds. They essentially admitted that in the rescissions package because they said it was pursuant to the Budget Control Act. They knew that what they were doing was illegal.

Now, 5, 6 months later, they have transmitted this package to cut $8 billion in programs that saves the lives of children across the world, that would gut U.N. programs that would save thousands of lives, and gut public broadcasting.

This is a full-scale attack on our international system, global peace and security, the health and welfare of millions of children across the world and on public television. We will fight back every step of the way.

Mr. Speaker, not only am I a ``no,'' I am a ``hell, no'' on this package.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to oppose this attack on our Nation's Capital.

I remind everyone that 1 week ago today, Donald Trump was in the most epic breakup of probably a generation. He and Elon Musk were fighting it out on Twitter and Truth Social, going back and forth. What was Donald Trump's response? Was it an in-earnest response to the actual attacks that were coming toward him as his actual agenda was sinking here in the House, as Elon Musk was taking to Twitter for days trying to take down his signature bill, his big abomination of a bill that would strip healthcare away from millions of Americans, Medicaid and Medicare, that would take food out of the mouths of millions of American children, that would cut programs that people across this country use to advance their education and that would blow a hole through the United States' deficit on a scale we have never seen before?

Just a week ago, Elon Musk was tweeting ``KILL the BILL,'' and in the days after was posting incriminating tweets not only about the President, but about the GOP and their ability to win and hold this House.

What was the President's response? Did he respond to these allegations? Did he rush to stop Republicans from trying to cover their tracks who had been lying for weeks about the nature of this bill and how it would gut our healthcare to millions of Americans, and how it would cause our Nation to spend generations of debt on the backs of the American people so that billionaires could get another small tax break? No. What he did was deploy ICE to make mass arrests and terrorize families in Los Angeles.

When people went to go exercise their First Amendment rights, he deployed the National Guard and then the United States Marines against the American people.

This is not only a distraction, this is a direct abuse of power because the reality of what was actually going on in this Chamber a week ago is that these people were trying to take away Americans' healthcare and food assistance, and Donald Trump was getting heat from his ex-boyfriend. Then what did he do? He deployed the United States military against Americans.

What is the GOP doing this week on this House floor? They are attacking the sovereignty and home rule of the people of the city of Washington, D.C.

I think it should not take anyone by surprise as Donald Trump is preparing to have the largest military parade in generations on his birthday here in this city that the three bills they are trying to pass on this House floor are directly attacking the city that is the capital of this great Nation, that is attacking policing and attacking home rule of this city. That is what these bills are all about.

They are a distraction. They are about taking over the self- governance of the city of Washington, D.C., and they are about taking away the power of the people.

I think it is important to understand that as the Washington, D.C., Delegate, Ms. Norton, just said, this is also about stripping the people of D.C. of vital reforms that came in the wake of George Floyd's death.

What is this all really about? What is this in service of? Is this really about making the Capital City more safe? No, it is not. In fact, it is about making it less safe for the people of Washington, D.C., who live here, who work here every day of their lives and, frankly, who take care of the rest of us who come here to work on behalf of our people.

This is not about public safety. This is about taking away vital reforms. It is about taking away home rule of Washington, D.C., and it is about taking away, once again, the rights of the people of this city.

I am proud to stand with the people of D.C. in opposing all three of these bills and to get us refocused on the real issues of this country and what is actually happening in this Chamber right now, which is that all of these guys sitting around here today are trying to take away your healthcare.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Min for convening this Special Order hour. As we are getting set up, I know that we have a poster that we want to get up here, so let me just start out.

Mr. Speaker, breakups are hard. They are really, really hard, and you know they are especially hard when they play out in the public eye. I think anyone who is online right now and watching the very public breakup of Donald Trump and Elon Musk would understand that.

I mean, if you have watched over the last several days, it has really been an epic breakup for the ages. In fact, I think it is fit for the ``Real Housewives'' if you have been watching what is unfolding, even just in the last several hours.

In fact, just a couple of hours ago, Elon Musk affirmed a statement about actually impeaching the President. I mean, who would have thought that we would end up here because, literally, less than a week ago, they were having a bromance in the Oval Office? It is really just incredible to think about what has happened over the last 72 hours when you think about it.

I think it is important to understand. I mean, Donald Trump is in office as the most powerful human on planet Earth as the President of the United States. Rather than thinking about balancing the budget, addressing economic free-fall, trying to figure out what to do with our foreign adversaries, how to help the American people, engaging in the debate on how to save healthcare for millions of Americans, or making sure our children are fed in the United States and across the world, he has instead been so embroiled in the breakup of his bromance with Elon Musk that they have been going hard at each other all day long.

I wanted to take this opportunity, while we have it, honestly, to share the tea with all of you because I think, I mean, we all kind of knew this was coming, right? I mean, we have kind of seen the signs for the last few days, especially the last few weeks, but I don't think that many of us thought it would come in such a dramatic form. I want to kind of break down and put in the Congressional Record what has actually transpired over the last 72 hours.

I think many of us were shocked when we saw just a couple of days ago when, on Tuesday at 1:30, Elon Musk tweeted the following. He said: ``I'm sorry, but I just can't stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it.''

I mean, really, we were quite shocked. I mean, let's be clear: All 215 Democrats have been saying this for weeks, but obviously, things really boiled over for Mr. Musk on Tuesday.

Then, just a few minutes later, he followed up with another shot at Donald Trump, where he says: ``It will massively increase the already gigantic budget deficit to $2.5 trillion (!!!) and burden America citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt.''

He went on in the following hours to literally accuse Republicans of making Americans debt slaves. I mean, this is actually what has been unfolding on the internet for the last several days, but this bromance is so messy. This breakup is messy as all hell, let me tell you.

Okay, you all know that Thomas Massie, who is a true fiscal conservative and is pretty much the only Republican in this Chamber who stands by his convictions and is not willing to sell out his soul for politics and power, voted against this bill because he read the CBO report and was not going to go and toe the line for the Republican Party.

He knew that Speaker Johnson was not telling the truth about deficit spending. He knew that Donald Trump in his sales pitch was not selling the truth. He knew it was going to cost $2.5 trillion, at least. We don't even know what the final cost is going to be.

This love triangle got even messier because both Thomas Massie and Senator Rand Paul got in on the mess here, so we have Thomas Massie here retweeted Elon Musk, and he said: ``He's right.'' We saw, just around that same timeframe, Senator Rand Paul also got involved.

Then, oh my gosh, well, Elon Musk--in a fit of passion, I am sure--I mean, he dialed it up even further. He said later in the day here--it looks like it was about 3:32 p.m. on X. It looks like Elon Musk was retweeting what other people were saying about his attacks on the President and this big abomination of a bill, and Elon Musk says: ``In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.''

I mean, we cannot make this up. This is like the real tea that is going on, on the internet.

Elon Musk dumped almost $300 million on Donald Trump's election, and he even weighed in and was like, yo, bro, you wouldn't even be President and wouldn't have the majority if I hadn't dropped all my dollars on you.

Then, Elon Musk--actually, this was yesterday afternoon because this went on all night, right? We were all watching it unfold in real time, and even just a couple of hours ago, here on this floor, we were all glued to our phones. We were, like, oh, man, this lovers' quarrel is getting messy.

Elon Musk, around 2:50 p.m. yesterday afternoon--we were in the DOGE Subcommittee when it happened. He tweeted this. Elon Musk tweets: ``Call your Senator, Call your Congressman, Bankrupting America is NOT ok! KILL the BILL.''

You know, I appreciate it. I am a '90s kid. He also tweeted a picture of ``Kill Bill,'' a Quentin Tarantino reference. We all know where Elon is coming from.

I want to be clear: I am not a fan. I think we all know that.

We have tried to subpoena you several times to come testify in front of the Oversight Committee. You have been giving yourself billions of dollars in contracts. You have been stealing American data. You have been breaking the law with impunity.

A couple of people asked me earlier how I felt about what is going on in this lovers' quarrel. I am, like, you know what? You get mixed up with messy people, you get a messy outcome. It is very clear that that is exactly what is going on.

I think we have all been hearing the rumors here in Washington, the breakup rumors. In fact, I think many of us, even on this floor on both the Democratic and the Republican sides, have heard the rumors that Donald Trump was getting frustrated with Elon, that he wanted to be on the helicopter all the time, and that he was following him around, going to Mar-a-Lago, showing up to these Cabinet meetings, and throwing all his money around and all that stuff.

In fact, in response to all the drama, Donald Trump fired back on Truth Social: ``Elon was `wearing thin,' I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!''

I mean, this is getting out of hand. This is really, really getting out of hand.

Then, Donald Trump--really, this is just the tip of the iceberg because what else does the leader of the free world have to do all day? I mean, he could try to end wars in the Middle East. He

could try to negotiate peace deals in Europe. Oh, wait, no. Actually, he is cutting funding for NATO. Sorry, I forgot about that. In fact, he just spent his entire day attacking his aggrieved lover.

Donald Trump--let's see, this is June 5 at 2:37--on Truth Social says: ``The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!''

There is not a lot that Mr. Trump and I agree on, but I am totally with you, Mr. President. If you want to go after Elon Musk's contracts, we are here for the fight, bro. Give me a ring, like, for real. We can get this across the finish line because, I mean, obviously, I know you guys were feeling the feelings for the first 130 days, and there is always a honeymoon period, especially after you go through a big thing together like an election. I know he helped you win your election, but obviously, now the honeymoon has worn off.

Mr. Speaker, if you really want to root out waste, fraud, and abuse-- even Donald Trump is saying it. Donald Trump apparently, even this week, asked his own staff if the entire DOGE effort was bullshit.

I am not trying--I know we are on the floor of the House of Representatives. To all of the people monitoring, that is a direct quote of the President of the United States. Let me just be clear on that.

Obviously, these guys know a lot about each other. They spent a lot of time with each other over the last few months. They actually know what is going on.

The battle continued today. In response to Donald Trump's comments about Elon wearing thin, the Autism Capital account--I don't know quite what that is--says: ``Trump fires back at Elon. The online battle begins.''

Elon Musk says: ``Such an obvious lie. So sad.''

We are all sad, right? It is always sad when a relationship ends.

Mr. Speaker, I think this is when things really got heated. This is why things are really hard when there is a breakup and there is a love triangle with the GOP. That is these guys over here. There is nobody here anymore. Just in case anyone is wondering, there are no Republicans, except the acting pro tempore here.

The thing that is so crazy is we all get wrapped up in our friends and their relationships. The Republicans were like: Okay, Mr. Trump, Elon is obviously your bestie, and he spent all this money. So we will go along with it--even though apparently the Cabinet and Republicans were really unhappy about it.

They are, like, okay, fine.

Then we are going scorched Earth here now. It was actually really interesting to me earlier on the House floor. How are Republicans dealing with it? Honestly, I haven't seen them cheerful in quite a few months. Clearly, something is about to happen.

Elon Musk--where are we at here on the timeframe here? This was actually shortly before I came to the floor this afternoon.

Elon Musk tweets: ``Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.''

Then he cheerfully says: ``Have a nice day, DJT!''

We all know what happens in breakups. Obviously, they got the tea on each other. This is a no-holds-barred breakup fight happening right now.

Finally, this was the mike drop of all mike drops. Just as I was walking onto the floor this afternoon, Elon Musk tweets: ``Yes.''

This was in response to some other person, who I don't know, who treated: ``President vs Elon. Who wins?''

``Trump should be impeached. . . . `'

We have all been through really hard breakups. I don't know if anyone remembers. Mr. Speaker, 140 days ago or so, it was a lovefest. They were here in the Capitol. It was so good.

Elon Musk's words were: Yo, President, I am going to save the government from debt slavery and the deficit.

These bros were on the helicopter every day. They were going to down Mar-a-Lago.

Elon Musk is now calling for the fricking impeachment of Donald Trump. That is some serious, serious business.

What does this all mean in reality? It is happening in real time. I haven't even checked my phone since I started this conversation. There might be more drama going down just since we started this very conversation on the floor.

The reality of the situation is they both got what they paid for. Mr. Musk spent almost $300 million in dark money to pay for his friend, Mr. Trump, to become the President and to win this Republican majority who is trying to send our country into the largest deficit spend in American history.

As for Mr. Trump, this is what happens when he sells his soul. We see what happens.

I have a lot of love in my heart for people who are going through hard times. I know that both of them are having a hard time. For the sake of democracy, for the sake of the American people, and, frankly, for the global security and safety of people all over the planet, I just have to say Mr. Trump and Mr. Musk need to cut this drama out. We need to take care of our people.

I am with Musk on this one. Mr. President, I don't mean to take sides. I am going to say it. Kill the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose the cruel and morally bankrupt healthcare agenda moving through this Chamber that would gut Medicaid; gut Medicare; collapse our healthcare systems; and cut food assistance to millions of children, seniors, and veterans across this country.

You don't have to take my word for it because Elon Musk, himself, called this a big, disgusting abomination, this bill that currently stands in the Senate. While here in the House the GOP is trying to gut healthcare and mental health care and addiction services through the budget.

These cuts will be devastating for New Mexico. New Mexico already has a healthcare crisis, where two-thirds of New Mexicans are on Medicaid and Medicare, where even with the best healthcare insurance you can get, you still can't get in to see a specialist, and where thousands of our rural and Tribal residents must travel hours just to get basic care.

Let me be clear. People will die if these cuts go through. What is the GOP doing here in this week? They are running a bill that is at best window dressing, hypocrisy, saying that they are supporting healthcare and addiction programs while they literally gut the programs that fund them. It is a complete lie.

Like so much of what they do, these guts are a scam, not just on the American people, but on themselves because apparently they don't read their own bills.

Let's be clear. Republicans are gutting healthcare and behavioral health programs. DOGE has cut thousands of employees at healthcare agencies, frozen funds for vital medical research, and eliminated mental health and substance abuse programs. They have rescinded a billion dollars in State and local behavioral health programs and cut 40 different mental health programs across the country. They are proposing to literally eliminate the vast majority of SAMHSA, which is the mental health program for this country, in the fiscal year 2026 budget. They just transmitted a rescission package to this Chamber last night that would cut billions of dollars in public health assistance for starving children and people suffering from AIDS and preventable infectious diseases across the world.

I ask my colleagues: What is this country becoming, where it dismantles our own healthcare system and literally allows children to starve and die across the world? What has literally become of the GOP?

Let me just say this. This is personal for me. This is personal in New Mexico, as somebody who grew up in a low-income family, as somebody who grew up relying on public healthcare and assistance programs, as somebody who has lost friends and family from the fentanyl crisis, and as somebody who represents one of the strongest and resilient set of communities in the country but who struggle every single day.

This is not leadership. This is a moral failure.

It is why I show up every single day to this Chamber with my full heart and my full fight for our communities.

It is why I have reintroduced my bill this week to expand Indian Health Service. It is why I introduced legislation to stop fentanyl, to address the public health nursing crisis, and to ensure that our rural communities can access telehealth and that they can actually stay in business with our rural clinics.

It is why I have secured millions for New Mexico for mental health and addiction recovery. It is why I submitted funding this year for the fiscal year 2026 budget to build a state-of-the-art trauma center in Valencia County and mental and behavioral health services in Sandoval.

It is why I have secured millions for transitional housing for veterans; a sobering center; behavioral health centers in Albuquerque; mobile school health centers in APS; and new fire and EMS stations in Moriarty, Sandia Pueblo, Peralta in Valencia. This is what leadership looks like.

I will just say this: In New Mexico, we know, of course, that we are all going to die, but we do not allow people to die because of policy failure and moral corruption.

We are here to fight. We will fight this abomination of a bill. We will fight the draconian cuts in the budget, and we will fight this corrupt rescission package. I will keep working every single day for New Mexicans because that is who we are.

Mr. Speaker, I find it laughable that for the last several decades, the GOP has branded themselves as the party of fiscal responsibility and economic development when they are trying to pass a bill right now that would blow a hole through the deficit, $37 trillion over 30 years, while they are trying to gut the infrastructure that helps small businesses survive.

They have attacked the Small Business Administration. They have a bill on the floor this week that would take SBA out of our communities. They slashed the New Mexico Minority Business Development Agency. We are talking about millions of dollars in lost revenue. They paused Job Corps and are going to cut it in communities across the country. They have gutted funding for NGOs and paused funding on the IRA. They are trying to directly attack our small businesses.

Now, when I think about the impacts of these cuts, I cannot do so without thinking of John Garcia, who has been the director of SBA for the last 8 years. He is a Vietnam veteran who has dedicated 40 years of his life to ensuring that our communities and our veterans have the resources they need to thrive, and yet DOGE didn't care. Elon Musk didn't care because he is one of those Federal employees, who just a few months ago was planning to do an expansive economic development plan across the State of New Mexico when he received the fork-in-the- road letter.

These are real people's lives, and you all are standing around here clowning us, pretending like you actually care about the American people and the economy and the deficit, and it is just a lie. You are running a scam on the American people. You are running a scam on yourselves, and you are hurting real people.

Mr. Speaker, I stand against this rule and the bill that it would advance.

Mr. Speaker, Elon Musk has left the building. Yet, unfortunately, his legacy of chaos and corruption lives on. The zombie of DOGE lurches on here in the House with the delivery of a $9.4 billion rescission package to make those cuts permanent, a fiscal year 2026 budget delivered in front of the Committee on Appropriations to eviscerate Federal programs, and, yes, the disgusting abomination of reconciliation that is in front of the Senate right now.

Though Elon Musk has exited the building, a new villain has entered the chat with OMB.

Let's evaluate the legacy that leaves behind thousands fired, agencies dismantled, shattered lives, starving children, over 200 lawsuits, and a grift for the ages as Musk stole data, primed the pump for billions in contracts, and set our agencies on a path for privatization.

Yet, let me be clear, Mr. Speaker. No one is above the law; not Elon Musk; not the OMB Director; not Donald Trump; not the grifter in chief. We will hold them accountable.

Mr. Speaker, the American people deserve to know what is happening in this body this week as the GOP is intentionally making moves in the dark of night.

Last night at 10 p.m., the Budget Committee passed the reconciliation bill by one vote while four Republicans sat it out, and tomorrow night they will move this shame-filled bill at 1 a.m. in the Rules Committee.

What don't they want the American people to know?

Is it that their bill will take away healthcare from 13.7 million people? Is it that it will take food out of the mouths of children? Is it that it will gut environmental programs? Is it that it gives giveaways to tech companies and their buddies, or that it increases taxes on working Americans who are struggling to put food on the table?

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear: When you convene in the dark of night or whether you do it or not, we will be there fighting for our communities. We will be fighting for our elders. We will be fighting for our veterans. We will be fighting for our kids, and fighting for the future and the dignity of this country and our communities.

Mr. Speaker, as we honor Police Week, I rise to take a moment to thank all of our first responders who bravely put their lives on the line every day across New Mexico and to honor all of those who have fallen in the line of duty.

As we honor our heroes, we must honor them not just in words, but in action, because our communities deserve real solutions: funding for law enforcement, behavioral health programs, keeping fentanyl off the streets, and real solutions that keep our communities safe.

That is why I have been working with State police, Tribal law enforcement, county sheriffs, and police departments across New Mexico to invest in technologies and tools to fund fire stations and emergency response, to invest in healthcare providers and behavioral health clinics, working with housing and homeless providers to help our veterans, elders, families, and young people, and to keep our communities safe. We do it by investing not only in the people who serve our communities bravely every day, but by investing in the people of our communities.

Mr. Speaker, Donald Trump's war on science is putting our country and our economy in peril. From haphazard firings of Federal workers who work on nuclear security and keep our food and medicine safe to firefighters and healthcare workers, I am here to say enough is enough.

As a proud woman in STEM and a bona fide science nerd, I cannot sit quietly as this administration jeopardizes the scientific advancement of this country.

That is why I am here to say enough; enough of the lies about Project 2025 and its antiscience agenda; enough with the dismantling of the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control, and the National Science Foundation; enough with canceling grants for medical research and STEM programs that ensure our country stays safe and globally competitive; enough with pedaling disinformation that jeopardizes the health and well-being of millions of Americans; and enough with hiring unqualified pundits, influencers, and political loyalists who pedal conspiracy theories and openly admit that no one should rely on them for advice. Mr. Speaker, everyone knows who I mean.

America is a leader in science and technology. We were the first in the world to send a man to the moon. We invented the polio vaccine and DNA sequencing. We invented the microchip, the internet, and GPS. Americans invented the airplane, the lightbulb, television, and email, and we fed the world with our innovations in food and agriculture.

Over the last 3\1/2\ months, we have seen an unprecedented attack on our Nation's science and technology, programs gutted, projects halted, and the world's leading scientists and engineers fired for no reason. A budget delivered to Congress just a couple of weeks ago by the President that would cut over a billion dollars in science, education, and workforce programs. A budget that would slash 30 percent of NOAA's budget, and strip the Environmental Protection Agency of more than half of its funding.

That is why nearly 2,000 doctors, scientists, and researchers have called this administration a wholesale assault on United States science that threatens the country's health, national security, and economic development.

Congress, the courts, and our communities are fighting back, conducting oversight, voting no, showing up to agencies, supporting cases across the Federal court system, and, yes, getting loud in the streets to stand with science.

Democrats stand with our scientists, our engineers, our innovators, and our healthcare workers. Democrats stand with our Federal science and healthcare agencies. Democrats stand with the people of this country who depend on that science and who depend on that innovation to keep us safe and fuel our economy because that is all of us.

I say to my fellow leaders in STEM, stay strong, stay in the fight. Democrats are fighting with you, and we will win.

Mr. Speaker, let me begin with a simple fact: No Member of Congress should be trading stocks. Period. None.

That is why I believe we must ban congressional stock trading and why I am proud to cosponsor this act here in Congress.

The American people deserve to know that their Members of Congress are working for them, not for stock portfolios; that their decisions, their policies, and their priorities are in the public interest and not the interest of private profit.

Let's be real, we have all seen it here, even over the last several weeks, as Members of this body have traded stocks while working on policies currently before Congress, possible insider trading in the midst of the President's trade wars. A President and a Speaker who both declared, it is a good time to buy while Members went out and did it: oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, Big Tech, and yes, AI.

Let me be clear: Not only is it wrong and immoral, it must be made illegal. We will be investigating anyone who engaged in insider trading, but banning stocks is only one piece of restoring faith in our public institutions, especially in a time when billionaires are buying elections, and Cabinet positions, and setting themselves up for sweetheart deals.

Let me also say this: We must get big money out of politics and get it out now. We have to end Citizens United, restore the power of the people, end gerrymandering, strengthen our ethics rules, and restore access to the ballot box. That means passing our For The People Act that was blocked multiple times in this Chamber, passing the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and passing the Freedom to Vote Act.

This is not a partisan issue; this is an American issue about protecting our democracy, protecting our people, protecting our communities, and protecting our planet.

Mr. Speaker, let's do the right thing. Let's ban stock trading and restore our faith in American democracy.

Madam Speaker, in Donald Trump's America, not even Elmo is safe because over the last 100 days, we have seen an unprecedented attack on the media, and especially our public media.

Let me say this: The freedom of the press and freedom of speech are not a privilege. They are enshrined in the United States Constitution, vital to our democracy and to accountability.

However, we have seen attack after attack, threats on the media and communications companies, outlets replaced in the Pentagon, an order attacking PBS and NPR just this very week, and an attempt to throw the AP out of the White House for daring to tell the truth.

These attacks are not just an outrage, they are an attack on our freedom, our democracy, and our rights as Americans, which is why I rise today to stand for and fight for a free and fair press, because it is vital to our democracy.

Mr. Speaker, Donald Trump says that he isn't sure if he needs to uphold the Constitution. It is clear to all of us from his attacks on the courts, the rule of law, our democratic institutions, our civil and legal rights, an open and free press, the dismantling of Federal agencies, and attacks on our communities that, indeed, he does not know what his constitutional duties are.

I have to say, Mr. Speaker, we are a nation of laws, a nation governed by a Constitution of the people and by the people. Donald Trump and his administration are not above the law. We will hold them to account, and that is why we are here every day fighting back, pushing back, and defending our democracy and the rights of the American people.

Mr. Speaker, a few days ago Donald Trump unveiled his so-called skinny budget for fiscal year 2026. This budget is only skinny on the cuts that it would cut for the American people, $163 billion for vital programs that serve our communities, Tribal programs, housing, healthcare, opioid reduction, and addiction recovery programs.

This is on top of the catastrophic attacks of DOGE on veterans, teachers, Social Security, and vital programs, and on top of the attack the GOP and Trump's reconciliation tax plan would have on Medicaid and food assistance.

Why? To give permanent tax breaks to billionaires.

What is the GOP's response this week? They are going to try and pass a bill to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America on the week that we recognize Cinco De Mayo.

This is the GOP's plan. This is the GOP's response, and this is Donald Trump's America.