Floor Statements

Section 9:

``The Migration or Importation of such Persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each Person.

``The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.

``No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.

``No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census Or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.

``No Tax Or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.

``No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over those of another: nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in another.

``No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.

``No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.''

Section 10:

``No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.

``No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing it's inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the Congress.

``No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.''

Article II, Section 1:

``The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows

``Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office or Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.

``The Congress may determine the Time of chusing the Electors, and the Day on which they shall give their Votes; which Day shall be the same throughout the United States.

``No person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.

``The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.

``Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:--`I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.' ''

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.

Mr. Speaker, the 118th Congress is in full swing now. We are here working full time again for the American people.

I just wanted to take a few moments tonight here on the House floor to clarify some things about how this new Congress has begun.

I point out, first, for scheduling purposes, of course, the State of the Union is next week. It is a time for the President to take stock and speak to the American people about where our country is today and where we are heading.

I hope the President is able to make good use of the opportunity, but I am afraid we are going to be subjected to more spin and few solutions to the major challenges, even the crises facing the American people.

Mr. Speaker, much has been made by the Democrats and the press about how House Republicans have kicked off the 118th Congress, but we all know the chatter is not an accurate representation of what is really going on around here.

The cameras don't capture it all. We are delighted that the C-SPAN cameras are roving about the floor now. It gives a little more personal view of what is happening here in the Chamber, but so much of what goes on outside these walls is not apparent to the American people.

Let's be plain about this. Let's put it plainly in real terms what is actually happening now. There are some real reforms that have been brought forward by the new House Republican majority.

We now have a much more open legislative process. As I explained to some friends back home over the weekend, we all remember the cartoon. I am 51 years old. We remember the cartoon Saturday mornings, ``I am just a bill on Capitol Hill,'' and it explained how a bill becomes a law. I explained to our friends from Louisiana who were in town that that has not actually been the way a bill becomes a law in this Congress for several years now.

We are getting back to that process. We are getting back to what we were taught in civics about how this is supposed to work. Bills have to be limited now to one single subject. We will no longer vote on a bill without giving Members at least 72 hours' notice to review it first. What a concept. You might have to actually read that legislation before you vote on it.

This is an important change: Any tax increase must now meet a higher threshold to pass. It was a simple majority, but now it is a two-thirds vote. That is a really important reform for the American people, given the state of the economy.

There will be no new mandatory Federal spending increases without equal or greater budget offsets. We have a $31.5 trillion Federal debt. We cannot continue on this trajectory. These reforms are really important for us.

By the way, remote voting and committee work are finally ended. No longer will you see Members phoning in their work. They have to be here. They have to come to work.

Let's contrast that with the old way of doing business. Under the previous leadership of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi--the Democrats had been in charge here for 4 years--we had bills written behind closed doors, sometimes literally by just a handful of people. The bills were loaded up with unrelated policies. These bills were unveiled, then brought for a remote vote before anybody could possibly read them, much less debate or amend the legislation.

We all know the Democrats are obsessed with having a top-down approach to legislating. I mean, they have all but shouted it from the rooftops over the past few weeks. Sure, that might have made former Speaker Pelosi's job easier, but it was not good for the American people. It was not good for the country. It was not good for this revered institution.

I suspect if you ask the American people, they would all agree. This is just common sense. We are restoring common sense here. We made commitments to America, and we are going to fulfill them.

Here is the reality: House Republicans have started this year by instituting the most positive reforms to this House in a generation. With Republicans back in charge, the status

quo, where there is no transparency, no accountability, outright disregard for regular order, is finally over, and that is a very, very good thing for the country.

Mr. Speaker, this week we are voting to end the COVID pandemic emergency order. This is one of the topics we have taken up, we have committed to the American people that we would do it when we started the Congress, and we have.

President Biden has said the pandemic is over. His press secretary says it isn't. Since the White House couldn't get its story straight, we voted now to put an end to the public health emergency declaration. Since the pandemic is over, the emergency declaration should be over as well.

Mr. Speaker, this week we are also passing the SHOW UP Act. Talk about something that is popular with the American people. This House has ended remote work in this body, the Senate did it long ago across the hall, and now we are voting to do the same thing for the remainder of the Federal Government. It is beyond time to require that the teleworking Federal employees return to work in order to remedy widespread terribly poor customer service.

Consider this: The IRS, just the IRS, they have a backlog right now of more than 8 million tax returns from 2021. Prior to widespread teleworking, the backlog was approximately just 1 million. That is an unacceptable thing. We have Federal employees at all these agencies who literally have not come to work. Well, we are going to end that. It is clear that these backlogs and customer service problems are due at least in part to ongoing teleworking policies, even as the pandemic is now in the rearview mirror.

Mr. Speaker, with Republicans back in charge, I could give you many examples of things that are going to be improving around here. That is just a couple. The House is back to work, and we intend to get the rest of the government back to work for the American people as well, whether all of our colleagues like that or not.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the great State of California (Mr. Kiley), my new colleague on the House Judiciary Committee, to discuss another important issue from this week.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the gentleman from Wisconsin. That is very well said. The evils of socialism have crept into all manner of our politics and areas of our culture.

Mr. Speaker, I will end our Special Order hour by just reminding the American people here watching and keeping track of this, that again, as I said in the opening, the Republican majority is in charge. The Congress is now fully operational and we are back to work for the American people.

Every week now, we will be passing substantive legislation that will send a message to the people that there is a new sheriff in town.

Today, in our House Committee on the Judiciary, we had an hour's long hearing on the catastrophe at the border, hearing from those who are down there contending with that situation every single day. The hearings like that one will lead us to legislative repairs for some of these problems that have been created by the Biden administration and the Democrats in charge here the last couple of years.

This week, we are voting to end the COVID pandemic emergency order at long last. We are passing the SHOW UP Act to get all these Federal employees back to work. And as Mr. Grothman indicated, tomorrow we will be voting to condemn socialism.

There is going to be a dramatic change between the Republicans in charge of this House and the Democrats. We are grateful for the opportunity to lead. We will do that every day and we will make the American people proud with our policy reforms and our process reforms.

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

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Republican Conference, I send to the desk a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.

Madam Speaker, I would like to kick off our first Wednesday Special Order Hour of the year by extending my congratulations and warm wishes to all of our colleagues, all the new Members, all the Members who are returning here. We have very, very important work to do in the 118th Congress.

I want to thank our House Democrat counterparts, as well, for working with us to ensure a smooth transition from the minority to the majority. It is an important part of our institution, and we are grateful for how this has gone so far.

We should all be rooting for the success of this Congress, obviously, because when Congress succeeds, everyone in our country benefits; and so we have an important responsibility before us.

We are under no illusion that the governing in such a closely divided body over these divided times is going to be any easy task. We know that. We know what the challenges are.

But we are also under no illusion that Congress has been operating as it should be. We think this can be done better, and our endeavor here is to show everyone how.

This problem that we faced here has been around for a long time. Look at just what happened in the last Congress. We had trillions upon trillions of dollars in government spending, which sent inflation soaring.

We had votes on immensely consequential, complex, 1,000-plus page bills sent to us just hours before we were called to vote upon them.

We had Congress steadily outsourcing its authority over to unelected bureaucrats in the executive agencies.

We had Members dial into congressional hearing, literally, from their bedrooms and their basements. We had Members voting by proxy while they were on vacation abroad.

With the 118th Congress, we are here to declare that those days are over. The House is getting back to work. We are ending remote voting and remote committee work in the House. That is going to restore greater transparency and accountability in the legislative process.

I actually believe that when we restore in-person work, as this was designed to be done, as the Founders intended, as they drew it up, it is going to have an added benefit because I believe it will help us rebuild comity and foster more civility in the House.

I am not going to belabor this point, but I would just say, at the end of last

year, Congress passed a 4,155-page bill. We spent $1.7 trillion on that omni; and I think it was one of the worst government funding bills in the history of Congress.

Instead of individual bills to fund each Federal agency one by one, with a roll call vote and amendments and deliberation process, we didn't have any of that. We had all the agencies lumped together right before the end-of-the-year deadline with dozens of unrelated policies attached to it. I mean, everything from electoral college changes to retirement changes, cosmetics regulation, healthcare policies, salmon fishing, and horse racing regulations, all crammed in there together, under the guise of a government funding bill.

The process for passing this bill was almost as ugly as the substance. It was written behind closed doors, I mean, literally, behind closed doors by a handful of people. It was brought to the House for a vote before anybody could possibly read it, much less debate or amend it.

Is there a single Member, is there a single Member of this body who thinks that is the way we should conduct the people's business? I don't think so.

So this should go without saying, but if we are going to fund each government agency and make changes to those unregulated policies, we should do it in regular order. We should do it in the regular process.

It should require a full, open debate in committee and on the floor, with the opportunity to make amendments. Republicans are committed to do this. We are back in charge, and that status quo that we have had here, where there is no transparency, no accountability, outright disregard for regular order, those days are over.

Campaign season is over. The House has elected our Speaker, and now it is time to get to work.

Madam Speaker, tonight, with the remaining time that we have in our hour, we reserved the time because we want to introduce the American people to some of the bright, new Republican Members that have joined the body here. They are going to discuss some of the problems that are currently facing our country.

They bring a fresh, new perspective to this, and their voices are very, very important. And we are also going to talk a little bit about the Republican vision for how we are going to address all of these crises.

We are in charge. We are here ready to work, and I am delighted to introduce a few of these key Members.

I would start first, Madam Speaker, by yielding to the gentleman from east Texas, Congressman Nathaniel Moran. I will say just a moment before I yield him the time, that we are neighboring districts. I represent Northwest Louisiana, and then right over the Texas border is my friend there. He is replacing the great Louie Gohmert who has finally retired from Congress.

I will tell you just a quick bit about Nathaniel. He is formerly a West Point student, a graduate of Texas Tech University. He has a B.A. in Russian language and area studies, an MBA, and a law degree. He had a civil practice in the east Texas area, focused primarily on business and commercial litigation and transaction work.

He served on the City Council in the city of Tyler, Texas. He was mayor pro tem and, ultimately, he was appointed the Smith County judge, and he served in that capacity from 2016 until he was elected to Congress in 2022.

The thing about a county judge in Texas is they are, effectively, the boss in that area. They hold all the power. They do all kinds of stuff. They are not just a judge in a court; they are like an administrator over the whole area; and he did it so well.

What I love about him most is he is a family man who is dedicated to his faith, and he is a patriot. They have four children, just like we do. He represents a great area, and we are delighted to have him.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Moran).

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas. Texas is well represented, and the First District certainly is.

Madam Speaker, I am delighted to introduce next for his first Special Order hour speech one of the bright lights in the new incoming class in the 118th Congress, Representative Mike Lawler from New York. He represents the 17th Congressional District there, which includes Rockland County, Putnam County, and portions of Westchester and Dutchess Counties.

Before serving in the U.S. House, he represented New York's 97th District in the State Assembly and served on really important committees there--banks, education, housing. He has a broad range of experience.

In the New York State Assembly--this is a neat statistic--he passed more bills than any other member of his conference. It really is a testament to his ability to work in a bipartisan, pragmatic fashion to approach the problems that we face. That is a skill that is going to come in handy here.

He previously served as a deputy town supervisor and as a senior adviser to a county executive. He was also the executive director of the State Republican Party in New York--that is no small task--and did a great job there.

He graduated from Manhattan College with degrees in accounting and finance. He was the valedictorian there, I would note, but his greatest accomplishment, of course, is his wife and daughter. They live in Pearl River.

We are delighted to have Congressman Mike Lawler here. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Lawler).

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from New York.

School choice is such an important issue. I love what he said: Education is the civil rights issue of our time. So well said.

Madam Speaker, there is a theme here tonight. We brought in incoming Members of the freshman class of the 118th Congress from the largest States, I think. It is not just a coincidence that we chose them for that duty tonight. We have had Texas and New York, and we will go to Florida next.

I am delighted to introduce a new Member from there, Representative Cory Mills. I will tell you just a little bit about him.

He is a decorated U.S. Army combat veteran and recipient of the Bronze Star. He left his home State of Florida to serve his country in uniform and then served further our U.S. State Department and other government agencies in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

In fact, he served with the 82nd Airborne Division and was a member of the Joint Special Operations Command, Combined Joint Task Force 20 in Iraq. He spent significant time there, 7 years of service in Iraq and approximately 2 years in Afghanistan. He served in the Kosovo campaign in 2000. He has traveled to the front lines of Ukraine during the Russian invasion to provide information for USAID and Department of State officials.

He is a busy guy. President Trump appointed him to the Pentagon as a Department of Defense adviser and foreign policy expert.

With his wife, I love that he, in the private sector, cofounded PACEM Solutions International LLC and PACEM Defense LLC.

We love that he is here with us because he is a husband and a father, a patriot and a combat veteran, an entrepreneur, a foreign policy expert, and a true American conservative. We are going to have a lot of work for him to do.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mills).

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend and I thank him for his service to our country. We are glad he is here.

Madam Speaker, we have many bright lights from Florida. Another one that I would like to introduce next is Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, who is here to serve her first term. She represents Florida's 13th Congressional District.

She is a member of the House Freedom Caucus and the Second Amendment Caucus, and is already very busy here on the grounds.

She is the first Mexican-American woman elected to the United States Congress to represent the big State of Florida. She was raised by a single mother in one of southern California's low-income neighborhoods. She tells the story often that she experienced firsthand the devastating consequences of radical, Big Government policies in cities like the one she grew up in. It was a tough childhood.

She joined the military at a young age and she went on to graduate from the University of West Florida with a bachelor's degree in biology. She served in the U.S. Air Force, and that is where she met her husband Andy, who is a Bronze Star recipient who earned a Purple Heart when enemy combatants shot at him in Afghanistan.

She brings an extraordinary work ethic and an inspiring life story and her fresh perspective to our Republican Conference. We are so happy to have her join our group here and our conservative cause.

Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Luna).

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend. That is such an important issue and we can't talk about it enough. Thank you for drawing the Nation's attention to it tonight.

Madam Speaker, our final new Member that we wanted to introduce tonight comes from another big State, and that is California.

I want to tell you a little bit about Representative Kevin Kiley. He serves the people of California's Third District in the House. He is from that district. He was born there. He attended the local public high school there. His mom was a special education teacher. I guess that inspired him because he began his career as a 10th grade English teacher at Manual Arts High School in inner city LA.

He chaired the English Department there. He led his students to significant academic gains and he founded an award-winning speech and debate team.

After graduating law school, he helped prosecute the civil case against China's Huawei Technologies for intellectual property theft. He defended the

Constitution in California courts--we have that in common. We did a lot of that work in the courts before we came to Congress. He became a prosecutor and he represented the people of the State of California against violent felons as a deputy attorney general.

He was first elected to the California State Assembly in 2016, and he did some significant work there in his tenure. He introduced significant school choice legislation. He authored ground-breaking new laws and protections for sexual assault victims, and privacy and criminal justice reform, and freedom of speech. In fact, in 2020, he was named the National Legislator of the Year for that work for advancing economic freedom.

I could go on about his bio, but I do want to mention this one little minor note. He has a bachelor's degree from Harvard, a law degree from Yale, and a master's in secondary education from Loyola Marymount. Clearly, he is overqualified to serve in the U.S. Congress, but we are glad he is here. I think he brings a lot to this body and will be an extraordinary Member.

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

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend. California's Third District is well-represented as everyone can see.

Madam Speaker, as is also obvious by the sample of new Members that we presented here tonight from New York, Florida, California, and Texas, this is an extraordinary class of Republican Members who have joined our conference here in the Congress. We look forward to serving with them. These will be fateful days for our country, and there is much hard work ahead in the 118th Congress.

Madam Speaker, with that, 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 5 o'clock and 49 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until tomorrow, Thursday, January 26, 2023, at 10 a.m. for morning-hour debate.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to speak in favor of my commonsense legislation, H. Con. Res. 3. I am really proud that this bill has been included among our very first bills that will pass in this Congress.

For Chairman Nadler, or Ranking Member Nadler now, I am happy to say, to stand here and suggest that this does not fulfill the will of the American people or is somehow not the right thing to do is absurd.

This resolution is very simple, and its language is clear. It condemns the attacks that have been committed against pro-life facilities, groups, and churches in the wake of the leak of the Dobbs opinion and the subsequent decision. It also calls upon the Biden administration to take action now to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Who could be opposed to that?

In recent years, there has been an alarming trend of more and more attacks on pro-life organizations and individuals. In the wake of the Dobbs decision, the problem became much worse. We have seen a significant increase in targeted violence against places and people who provide care for pregnant women and their unborn children.

Here are just a few of the more than 100 incidents that have taken place just in the last several months:

May 5, last year, a Catholic church and school in Armada, Michigan, was vandalized with satanic symbols and messages calling for the death of Republicans.

May 8, the Oregon Right to Life office was firebombed.

May 26, seven high school students in New Jersey were suspended after physically assaulting another student holding a pro-life sign.

June 26, a pro-abortion extremist was charged with attempted murder in Los Angeles.

July 7, Sacramento, a pregnancy care center was threatened by a man with a machete.

September 24, in Lake Odessa, Michigan, an elderly pro-life volunteer was shot while canvassing door to door to discuss an abortion ballot proposal.

January of this year, just several days ago, a pro-life billboard was defaced with the words ``kill them kids'' in Portland, Oregon.

This last one that I wanted to mention is personal to me. On July 11, pro-abortion activists vandalized the Women's New Life Clinic in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. They spray-painted anti-life messages on the walls. Being located right next to the abortion provider in Baton Rouge at the time, the largest in our State, this clinic has offered hope to countless pregnant women by counseling them on all of their options and not pushing them to abort their unborn children, as the clinics do.

I am proud to call many of the leaders of that clinic in Baton Rouge personal friends. We have to stand for them and stand against violence, vandalism, personal threats, and intimidation.

Nationwide, there are over 2,700 pregnancy care centers providing essential services in all 50 States. They serve millions of women every year. They have over 10,000 medical professionals supporting them. They do not deserve the treatment they have endured, and they certainly deserve that this Congress condemn the violence committed against them.

Since there has been so little accountability for the leaked draft Dobbs opinion and the ensuing violence and intimidation against pro- lifers that have followed, we are making the position of Congress clear today. We condemn violence, property damage, threats, and intimidation tactics, and these clear violations of Federal and State laws must be prosecuted.

We have the opportunity before us today to start to push back against the mob that has targeted the groups and individuals that care for women and their unborn children. Republicans are ready to act. I am so proud that over

100--I think nearly 130--Republicans so far have cosponsored this.

It will pass, and it should, and it will be a shame if our Democratic colleagues do not join us in this condemnation of violence. The question is, will they?

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the resolution.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.

Once again, House Republicans are eager to stand for the most vulnerable among us, the unborn. We are the party of life, and we are proud of it.

There is no difference between an infant born alive after a failed abortion and an infant born into the arms of loving parents. Those two babies deserve to be treated with the same level of excellent medical care.

Yet, abortionists have demonstrated a lack of interest in preserving the lives of babies who enter the world alive and supposedly under their care.

We know what happens in these clinics. By way of just one example, lifenews.com reports that an abortion provider in Minnesota was recently asked by a woman 22 weeks pregnant and considering an abortion what that provider would do if her baby were taken out while his heart was still beating. The abortion provider responded: ``We don't tell women this . . . but if we was to proceed with the abortion and the baby was to come out still alive . . . most likely, we will break the baby's neck.''

That is chilling and barbaric, but our Democratic colleagues will not admit that. They will vote against it today. Watch the board. It will be shocking, and it will be true.

The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act would make it a Federal crime for abortionists to kill or fail to provide care to babies who survive abortions.

Madam Speaker, I encourage all of our colleagues to support this critical legislation. As was said, it should pass unanimously, but it won't.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Obernolte), my friend, and Chairman Grijalva for helping us on this.

I rise in support of this bill, H.R. 6427, the Red River National Wildlife Refuge Boundary Modification Act. I urge my colleagues to support it, as well.

As has been explained here, it is a straightforward bill that addresses a very simple problem. For years, the Red River Wildlife Refuge in northwest Louisiana, my home turf, has been a boon for hunters and outdoorsmen and other recreationists. Just last year, it hosted over 209,000 visits. That is greater than the population of Shreveport, Louisiana, which is the largest city in my district.

Thousands of these visitors went to the refuge for the express purpose of hunting and fishing. The refuge truly has contributed to Louisiana's status as a sportsman's paradise. This is a sentiment that we in Louisiana hold so dear, we print it on every license plate.

The refuge's stated goal is to provide for the restoration and conservation of fish and wildlife habitat, including migratory birds, as has been explained here, that all come within the Red River Valley ecosystem. However, the refuge's current structure is insufficient to meet the goals set by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, especially for migratory waterfowl.

As we stand here today, the refuge can only support about one-third of the birds it is intended to support. So my bill would help address this deficiency by modifying the refuge boundary to include a 3,300- acre tract of privately owned land for the purpose of eventually incorporating the tract into the refuge. This boundary modification would not alter the authorized acreage of the refuge, and it would still keep the refuge well within its current authorized use and size.

The Fish and Wildlife Service anticipates this tract would dramatically increase the number of migratory waterfowl the refuge is able to support. The bill will also benefit the local economy through partnerships with agricultural producers, greater access by the public to hunters and other recreationists, and greater waterfowl distribution throughout the region, as populations radiate from the refuge.

We spent a tremendous amount of time speaking with all the stakeholders on this issue and collecting their feedback. State and local support for this legislation includes all of the State senators and representatives who represent the area, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, the Louisiana Forestry Association, several members of the local Caddo Parish Commission and nearby landowners.

This bill is pro-conservation, pro-hunting, pro-agriculture, and pro- outdoor recreation, so we believe it truly is a win-win-win.

I thank the chairman, the ranking member, the gentleman from California, and all the Natural Resources Committee for working with me on this bill. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my friends for joining us on the floor tonight at this late hour. It has been a long day on Capitol Hill, but there are things that need to be said here.

It is December again, and of course that means that we are in the homestretch of a new Congress, this Congress, the 117th. The homestretch of any Congress, as we know, is when the threat of bad legislating is at its most pronounced. We have certainly seen all that here this week.

Government appropriations have been taken hostage by Democrats who want to spend even more. They seem to have forgotten about the trillions of dollars that have already been spent earlier this year.

The NDAA has been taken hostage just today by Democrats who think the right to vote is under some sort of secret threat. I guess they didn't pay attention to the massive voter turnout in Georgia just yesterday.

Here tonight, they rushed through a rule to codify same-sex marriage and create a private right of action that will vilify and supercharge attacks on people of faith.

Madam Speaker, this lame duck session is doing serious and lasting harm to our Republic, and I guess it is a fitting end to this--what really has been a disastrous Congress overall under Democrat rule. We have with trillions upon trillions in government spending, sending inflation for all American families soaring.

We have had votes on immensely consequential, complex, thousand-plus- page bills, handed to us just hours before those votes. We have had Members dial into congressional hearings from their bedrooms and basements and even while on vacation in Europe--proxy voting. Thankfully, this is all about to come to an end, mercifully in less than a month.

The American people have spoken and the American people have given Republicans control of this body to provide accountability and produce results.

Madam Speaker, this is a legislative body and it is high time for this body to get back to the work that we are supposed to be doing for the American people. Come January, that is exactly what we intend to do.

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues for joining us here today to talk about all of it.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the great State of Tennessee (Mr. Rose).

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend. That is so well said. There are so many issues to cover.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess).

Madam Speaker, I thank the doctor for highlighting that. It is such an important issue, and just one more example of so much that has gone wrong here.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Burchett).

Madam Speaker, I really do have the honor to yield next to a friend and colleague who will be retiring at the end of this Congress.

Since 2005, he has represented the dozen counties stretching nearly 120 miles down Texas' eastern border with Louisiana. I represent one of his neighboring districts over that border; and in our region and, in fact, I can say nationwide, Congressman Louie Gohmert is a household name.

Prior to his election to Congress 9 terms ago, he served as a district judge in Texas, and Chief Justice of the Twelfth Court of Appeals of Texas. He is also a captain in the U.S. Army. He served our Nation bravely.

Judge Gohmert has been a bold defender of America's founding principles his entire life and career; and whether he is leading a debate in our House Judiciary Committee, or in the Natural Resources Committee, or setting the example for all of us with his tireless advocacy here on this House floor, Louie Gohmert has been a consummate servant for the people and for our great Nation.

Madam Speaker, I am happy to yield to the gentleman from the great State of Texas (Mr. Gohmert), my friend and my colleague.

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for his comments. He has been a great example for that, and that was a fitting end to a long career and a lot of hours here on this floor articulating the truth and standing for America's founding principles.

Madam Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Kustoff), another good friend, colleague, and a patriot.

Recognizing A. Keith McDonald

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for fitting into the hour and honoring Mayor Keith McDonald. He sounds like a faithful public servant and one I wish I had the pleasure of knowing. We commend him on his long public service, and it is fitting that we do that on the night that we are bidding farewell soon to our friend and colleague, Congressman Louie Gohmert, as well.

These are the kind of faithful public servants that the Founding Fathers had in mind, that they would serve selflessly for a long tenure and give themselves to their community.

Madam Speaker, I know the clock has wound up and I am out of time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to thank my defense fellow, Jay Hurst, for a year of exceptional service to our office and to our Nation.

Jay joined us in January, and he has enriched our office with his invaluable insights and great company. He was instrumental in the NDAA process and meeting with Members and staffers from offices across Capitol Hill, and achieving great wins for our State, Louisiana, and our country.

Although he was only with us for a year, Jay instantly became like family to us, mentoring our interns and making complex military issues understandable for staff. In his spare time--he didn't have much--he also published scholarly articles on military matters on a number of pressing policy questions.

Jay is leaving us for the Pentagon, where he will undoubtedly carry on the high standard of excellence that he brought to our office. My friend will be missed and prayed for. I thank him for all of his service.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the tenure of my longtime scheduler, director of operations, and policy adviser, Ruth Ward.

After 6 extraordinary years on Capitol Hill, Ruth is leaving public service for a new opportunity, and she is also adding a second baby to the family in the process.

My wife, Kelly, and I have known Ruth for many years and have admired her work and exceptional talents long before she joined our team after my election to Congress in 2016.

Ruth has been more than a consummate professional and office coordinator. She has brought faithful perspective and wise counsel. She has mentored countless young staffers, and she has opened her home to those who are away from family during the holidays.

Ruth has been like family to all of us. Everybody on Team Johnson will miss her presence terribly.

Madam Speaker, we thank her for her invaluable contributions to the people of our home State of Louisiana and ensure her that she and Richard and their young family will remain in our prayers as they pursue the next steps in their journey.

We are grateful, Ruth. Thank you for a job well done.

Mr. Speaker, we are deeply concerned about this for the reasons that are stated.

There are a lot of people who are confused about it because what they have done here is they have taken three pieces of legislation, three titles, and merged them into one.

I don't have a problem with two of the three. In response to Ms. Lofgren, I think that antitrust enforcement provision is okay because currently it is not explained what the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation can transfer are State AGs' antitrust cases that arise under Federal laws to other jurisdictions. That title would prevent that from happening. We are okay with that. I voted for that in committee.

But one of the other titles here is the disclosure of subsidies by foreign adversaries. We didn't get any regular order on that. We didn't get to actually debate that, mark it up in committee. The substance of that one is okay because it would require parties to notify when they receive subsidies from countries that are threats to the U.S. when filing a merger. We all agree on that.

The problem is, the thing we are so concerned about, is what Ranking Member Jordan has just talked about, the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act.

For folks who are trying to follow this back home, this would change filing fees paid by companies seeking regulatory approval for mergers. It would reduce the fees for deals valued under $1 billion, and it would raise them for the larger mergers, over $1 billion.

Now, here is the problem. All of this sounds fine so far, but here is the problem. There are no restrictions on the use of the additional funding that is generated by these fees. And the FTC and the DOJ will have even more power to institute their bad policies. This is not a de minimus amount. We are talking about $1.5 billion over 5 years. That is a lot of money.

Just so you know, since President Biden took office, the FTC has pursued radical goals beyond its jurisdiction. One Commissioner said she supports prioritizing FTC investigations relating to systematic racism and rulemaking for racist practices. These are very amorphous terms. They have been abused and used for all sorts of nefarious purposes.

Republican Commissioner Wilson described Democrat goals as rooted in ``a unified worldview that draws heavily on . . . Marxism.'' That is at the FTC.

Some of the actions of the Chair, Lina Khan, are just outrageous, what she has done.

The DOJ, of course, has indeed been weaponized. We have been talking about that in committee. We have been laying out the evidence, and we will be presenting that to the American people in the new Congress that begins in January.

If what the chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary, Mr. Nadler, said is true, that they are ``in desperate need of more resources,'' maybe they could have not spent money and resources by siccing the FBI and all the U.S. Attorney's Offices on parents who are going to school board meetings to object to curriculum that their kids are being exposed to and mandates, school closures, and all the rest.

This is outrageous. These institutions have been weaponized, and the people are losing their faith in them. We cannot, in good conscience, stand on this floor and send them $1.5 billion to engage in more of this madness.

We have no choice but to oppose the legislation for that reason, and I think it is a good one. I think most of our colleagues are going to agree.

Madam Speaker, by direction of the House Republican Conference, I send to the desk a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and express my admiration for my friend, Mr. Gerry May. He is the man behind the ``Hometown Patriot'' series on our locally owned ABC-TV affiliate in Shreveport, Louisiana, KTBS.

``Hometown Patriot'' is a program that chronicles the stories of Louisiana's veteran community. To date, they have aired over 500 veteran stories, and many more are yet to come. These stories are critical because they preserve our historical record, and it is a tribute to all who have served this country so patriotically and so favorably.

``Hometown Patriot'' will ensure that future generations of Louisianians will be able to better understand the service of these heroes, and it will keep their stories alive for many years to come.

Mr. May himself has a long history of excellence in broadcast journalism, from covering Louisiana politics to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, to the Saints during their triumphant Super Bowl win. This history of impactful journalism has even landed Mr. May in the occasional Hollywood movie bit role.

I thank Gerry for running ``Hometown Patriot'' and making sure our veteran community has an advocate in our local media. We can never thank them enough.

Keep up the great work.

Madam Speaker, for the remainder of this Special Order we will have a number of Republican Members from around the country who will come up and address the big issues of the day, the continued crises, not the least of which is our economic crisis here on the eve of the latest GDP numbers that we all anticipate will confirm that we have a recession, even though the administration apparently can't even define what ``recession'' is. Instead of trying to fix the problems, they are trying to work on the definition of words.

Madam Speaker, I yield first to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Keller).

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend; that was so well said. As we told Secretary Mayorkas in a Judiciary Committee hearing just a few months ago, clearly what he is doing is intentional, and I believe that he needs to dust off his resume because we are going to have the majority soon, and there will be a reckoning for that.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Tiffany).

Madam Speaker, the news is so staggering, and it is an incalculable amount of loss that Americans are experiencing. I love what the gentleman said: It is not overdoses now, it is poisoning. That is exactly right. It is the leading cause of death of Americans aged 18 to 49.

Overdoses, these poisonings, are killing more people than cancer, car wrecks, and COVID, all of it. What are we going to do about it?

I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin.

Absolutely. I cannot wait for us to get control of the gavel again.

Madam Speaker, I yield next to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Rose).

Madam Speaker, that was so well said. The gentleman is right; every single State is a border State, and I know the good people of Tennessee are just as concerned as my friends in Louisiana and also in the State of Georgia.

Madam Speaker, I yield next to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Allen).

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his comments, and he is right. The energy crisis is a direct result of policy choices. It could be reversed if Democrats would simply acknowledge their error, but I am afraid they won't.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Grothman).

Madam Speaker, I have never seen my friend so animated.

It is time for that because it is an existential crisis to the country. Truly, when we asked the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff what the greatest threat to America is, they don't say China first. They say the national debt. It is just out of control.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions).

Great words, my friend. I am so thankful that you summarized again how ideas have consequences.

Madam Speaker, that is our concern. These are policy choices that have led to all this pain for families and individuals in all of our communities, and it just seems like madness to us. But our message is hopeful because we are going to turn the corner. We are going to lead this country in a new direction, and we are excited to relay that to people.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser).

Madam Speaker, this is a great reminder that this is real pain for real people. This is not a game here. What we do affects the lives of all of our constituents, all Americans, and we have a responsibility to fix it.

Thank you for highlighting that.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the State of California (Mr. LaMalfa), a good friend of mine.

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for his faithful efforts and being such a clarion call and a voice of reason.

One of the things that is necessary to maintain a constitutional Republic as the Founders warned us is that you have to have an informed and engaged electorate. I think people are paying attention now. I think they are feeling the pain, and it is drawing awareness to our situation. I think they are going to evaluate.

I am hopeful and optimistic, so we can turn some of this around. I thank my friend for his efforts.

Madam Speaker, you heard a recurring theme here tonight, whether we focus tonight on the economic crisis, the border crisis, the energy crisis--all the many crises--the common theme is this: If you review the facts objectively, Madam Speaker, then the evidence shows that all of these are intentional. They are intentional. These are the foreseeable and obvious results of the Democrats' policy choices of the

Biden administration and the Democrats that run both Houses of Congress.

House Republicans, on the other hand--as all my colleagues tonight have pointed out--are optimistic. We are so looking forward to the upcoming August district work period so that we can take our vision for a new direction for this country directly to the American people.

I believe that message is going to be well-received. I think people are desperate for the answers, and we have solutions to all the great challenges facing this country.

Madam Speaker, I thank all my colleagues, once again, for being faithful and being here tonight for this Special Order.

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