Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, today I wish one of the members of my team, Sam West, a very happy birthday but also farewell.

Sam is originally from Indianapolis. He went to school at Indiana University and Purdue University, so he is both a Hoosier and a Boilermaker. He worked as an auto technician before coming to work here in Congress.

In healthcare there are a million acronyms. I don't know of any other place in the world than D.C. that uses more acronyms, and nobody seems to know what they stand for.

It is because of Sam's time working on automobiles that allowed us to see eye-to-eye on so many things. I spent my entire career in the private sector as an auto dealer, and Sam has always been able to translate a lot of Pennsylvania's healthcare priorities into terms that I have been using my whole life, and it just clicked. We really worked well together.

He is moving over to the Senate to be a health policy adviser for Senator Bill Cassidy. I know he is going to do a great job.

Sam, I tell people all the time, it is not so much the Member that matters, it is the staff. Here is Sam with a couple of his cheerleader friends, Indianapolis Colts cheerleaders. Wherever he goes, he will always be a part of our team, and he is always going to have great fans.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Maudie Beatty for her selfless and dedicated service to the children, families, and community of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. For 35 years Maudie has taken in and cared for over 300 foster children, demonstrating the valuable attributes of compassion and generosity to those around her who are the most vulnerable and in need.

As a beacon of hope in the community, Maudie is one of the exemplary constituents that it is my honor to represent from the 16th Congressional District of Pennsylvania. It is, undoubtedly, these heroes who too often go unrecognized that are the foundation of what makes this country the greatest country in the world.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Fischbach for hosting this Special Order tonight.

Mr. Speaker, it has been 7 months since the Supreme Court's landmark decision to overthrow Roe v. Wade. In that time, we have seen incredible progress to protect life around this

country, including right here in Washington, D.C.

Just last week, many tens of thousands of families came out to the annual March for Life to peacefully and prayerfully show their support for the unborn. The week before that, the new pro-life Republican majority took major steps to protect the unborn. We passed legislation to ensure babies who survive an abortion receive the healthcare they need and to condemn the attacks against pro-life crisis pregnancy centers.

All of this is so important, but it is only the first step. Advocates and people of faith around the country are going to their State and Federal lawmakers and asking for change.

It is my hope that this Republican majority will continue to pass pro-life legislation.

But my real question is: Where is the outrage?

Nearly 1 million unborn children are expected to die in 2023 from abortion in the United States of America where protecting life is our highest calling, where we are the first responder anywhere in the world anytime there is an attack on life, anytime there is a tragedy, and anytime there is a need for somebody to come there to try and save lives, and yet, in 2023, 1 million of the unborn will be aborted.

It is incredible to me that in a nation that has been blessed for so long with so much can turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to the cries of the unborn.

My question is: Where is the outrage of my fellow Americans?

Where is the cry against this injustice that is taking place?

Where are we standing not as a political party but as citizens of the world?

As I said earlier, if there is a cry for help anywhere on this globe, it is America that will be the first responder. It is America that will be there to save lives. It is America that will go to any end of the world to help, and yet in our own country, we are willing to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to the abortion of over 1 million babies a year.

Where is the outrage?

Madam Speaker, there are few times in our lives when we really get to honor true heroes. Today is one of those days that we have by naming a post office after him.

I am going to read through this document that I have to give you an idea of just who Captain Andrew Gomer Williams was.

Now, this is at a dedication. It starts off with: ``Monuments are as old as our race and all along the history of the dim and dusty age down to the bright and joyous present we have been perpetuating the memory of heroic men.''

These elegant words, so very appropriate this morning, are not mine but were the actual words of Andrew Gomer Williams, whose monument we gather here this morning to dedicate.

He delivered them in a speech on September 11, 1889, on the Gettysburg Battlefield during ceremonies dedicating the monument to his regiment, the 63rd Pennsylvania Volunteers, who fought during the famous battle on July 1 through July 3 in 1863.

Much like they gathered on that field 132 years ago, we gather here today on this field to perpetuate the memory of a heroic man.

Ironically, Williams, who fought for the Union, was born in Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy on September 8, 1840, to a Welsh immigrant father and an eastern Maryland mother.

His family moved from Richmond to Pittsburgh in 1847 and from Pittsburgh to Etna 1 year later. The recipient of very little education, Andrew Williams went to work as a nail cutter in the local factory at the young age of 10. He was a fourth grader.

Maybe it was the sense of patriotism that swelled in Andrew Williams' heart, or maybe it was wanting to escape the dullness of factory work for the great unknown adventure of war, but regardless of the reason, we do know that at age 21, in 1861, Mr. Williams was helping to raise three companies of men to become part of the newly created 63rd Pennsylvania Volunteers and leave the smoky city of Pittsburgh for the battlefields of his native South.

He was elected captain of Company E but declined the honor and the rank to initially serve as their third sergeant when their 3 years of service began on September 9, 1861.

He was promoted to 2nd lieutenant on the field during the Second Battle of Bull Run in 1862, and then in the spring of 1863 he was promoted to the rank of captain of Company E of the 63rd Pennsylvania Volunteers. He fought in over a dozen battles and was wounded four times including at the Charles City Crossroads on June 30, 1862, and again at the Battle of Fredericksburg on December 13, 1862.

1863 would find Williams leading his men at the Battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. During the Battle of the Wilderness on May 5, 1864, Williams was thought to have been mortally wounded after being struck in the left temple by a Confederate minie' ball and left for dead. Miraculously, he was found barely alive 4 days later on the Wilderness battlefield.

According to his great-granddaughter Mary Caroline Baker Hunt, Williams' life was saved by falling wounded inside the muddy boundaries of a spring with the muddy soil saving his temple wound from infection and providing him with much-needed water. He was mustered out with the rest of his regiment on August 6, 1864. But Williams would carry the external scars from the near fatal wound for the rest of his life.

After his return home to Etna, he was unable to find work for the next 3 years due to his wounds. He entered Duff's Business College in Pittsburgh to become a bookkeeper and also read law at home.

In 1868, following his father's death in a boiler explosion at the Fort Pitt Foundry, he was forced to return to cutting nails in the Etna rolling mill to help support his family while continuing his law studies at night. Besides his father's tragic death, Williams, throughout his life, experienced the deaths of 13 members of his family by explosions, railroad accidents, burnings, and drowning.

In spite of all the personal and family trauma, Andrew G. Williams, marched on and came to Butler in 1875, and upon being admitted to the Butler bar the following year, immediately formed a partnership with Alexander Mitchell. This partnership would last until Mitchell's death 40 years later.

During these four decades together, the men claimed to have never had an argument or ever having signed a lease for their office on the Diamond with their word as their bond. The only day in the entire history of their practice they did not open was when both men's Civil War regiments were holding reunions on the same date in Pittsburgh. The two lawyers closed up shop every day at precisely 4:45. It was said that people along their walking route home

could set their watches by their passing.

The house Andrew Williams came home to each night he built himself in 1887 for his second wife and three sons and daughter and for his three children from his deceased first wife.

Williams' military service in the Civil War continued to play an important role in his life with his membership in the local chapter of the Grand Army of the Republic, or GAR, a Civil War veterans' group, and contributing his time to help those survivors scarred by the effects of the war. He helped Civil War soldier spouses whose husbands had served and had died to get them the benefits that they deserved.

He also volunteered serving on the Board of Directors of the Civil War Orphans' Home that was located on Butler's Institute Hill from 1867 until moving to Mercer, Pennsylvania, in 1905.

Outside of his legal practice and his Civil War-related activities, Mr. Williams served one term in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and 4 years in the Pennsylvania State Senate. He also served for 20 years as the choir director of Butler's First Methodist Church and rose to the rank of Grand Commander, Knights of the Templar of the State of Pennsylvania in the Masons.

After a full life devoted to his Nation, his church, his community, and--most importantly--his family, Andrew Gomer Williams died in his North McKean Street home on April 6, 1923, from pneumonia at the age of 83 at 10:40 that morning. Fittingly, for a man who had been a soldier in the Civil War, his funeral and burial were held on April 9, the same day, only 58 years earlier, that Robert E. Lee had surrendered his Confederate Army to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at a place called Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia.

Now, the finish to this speech is not mine. But I think it is so relevant as to where we are today. Allow me to conclude my speech today the same as it began with the eloquent words spoken at Gettysburg by Andrew Gomer Williams well over a century ago.

Mr. Williams said:

We have met again on this field after so many years to

perpetuate the memory and render our faint and feeble tribute

of praise to the valor of those Pennsylvania soldiers.

Especially at this time in our history, these are the heroes we should be naming buildings and Post Offices with. It has taken a long time to get to this point.

Madam Chair, I thank you for working together on this.

I do hope people listen to these words. These are the true heroes of America. These should be the examples that we all try to live by today. In a country that is getting too far apart and needs to get back together, this guy is a hero. This guy deserves as much time as we can give him.

Mr. Speaker, Fred and I met several years ago. A mutual friend of ours by the name of Tom Marino had been elected and then decided to leave the Congress. We were really fortunate because the person who came in after Tom was Fred.

We formed kind of an instant friendship. I think a lot of it is because of who raised us, because we oftentimes talk about family.

I was looking at different things that people have said over the ages. This is Thomas Aquinas, over seven centuries ago, who summed up what Western civilization understood to be the natural debt of gratitude all human beings owe to God, family, and country.

Isn't that the truth for all of us? Who is it that we owe this incredible life we have? Those who came before us.

We talked today, as we talk often. Mr. Speaker, 1\1/2\ million men and women gave their lives. It wasn't so much that they gave time; they gave

their lives in order for us to practice this incredible form of government, this representative Republic.

People often get confused and talk about our democracy, our democracy, our democracy. We are truly a Republic, and every voice gets heard, every voice gets counted, and every person gets counted.

I think, for my friend and I, we spend a lot of time together. When I look up in the gallery, his family is here.

Where is Camrie? Camrie, stand up, honey. You are so little, I can't see you from down here. There she is.

She is my favorite source of energy. I have never seen a child with the energy she has. But you realize, she is just an offshoot of her grandma and grandpa.

Listen, we have had great fun together, but I think more than anything else, when you come to Washington, if you have never been here before, and you have not served the public before, one of the things when you come to Washington that you are told right away is, if you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.

Well, for me, it wasn't getting a dog. It was getting a chance to serve with Fred Keller. We do a lot of things together, mostly talk about family and faith and the opportunity we have to serve the people who sent us.

It is never about me; it is always about we. It is never about us; it is always about our families. It is about our wives. It is about our children. It is about our parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles.

You talk about your former employer so well that I feel I know Max. Although we have never met or shook hands, just from the way you have talked about him, I feel I know who he is, and I know how important he was in the whole being of Fred Keller.

This is truly one of the most unselfish men I have ever known. He doesn't come here for himself. He comes here for his family. He comes here for the people he represents.

He comes here for those 1\1/2\ million men and women who have given their lives to give us the opportunity to practice this incredible form of government.

I know sometimes we get mixed up about what this is all about when we sit here and say this is the people's House, with the emphasis on the people. It is not Fred Keller's House. It is not Mike Kelly's House. It is not Virginia Foxx's. It is not Dr. Mariannette Miller-Meeks'. It is about the people we represent, and each of us represents about three-quarters of a million people.

I know that every week when we have the chance to come here and share time together and share the opportunity to actually bring about legislation, as do you, Mr. Speaker, we need to take a breather sometimes and forget about all the hyperbole and think about all the blessings we have because there is truly no place else in the world like this. There never has been, but it is up to us to make sure it is available for that next generation.

When I look up in the gallery, and I see Camrie up there, Fred doesn't come here for Fred. Fred comes here for Camrie and for Karsen and for all the other people he represents back in Pennsylvania.

I think that is the beauty of us, who are so fortunate and so honored to serve, because it is not about us. It is about our constituents. It is about all those who came before us.

I have to tell you, buddy. I hate to see you leave because we have had a lot of fun together. We shared a lot of meals. We shared a lot of stories.

You are great at entertaining my staff. They get bored with me from time to time. They always say, boy, I hope Mr. Keller stops by today.

We have formed an incredible friendship. I have gotten to know Fred. I have gotten to know his wife and his family. He is truly one of the finest Americans you could ever be around.

It has been a wonderful time. It has been a wonderful life, not to coin any famous movies that are a favorite, but I have to tell you that it has been a great time, buddy.

The service you have given to God, to your family, and to your country is immeasurable. We are going to miss you being here, but I know this is not the end of the Fred Keller story.

I am a phone call away, brother. Any time you need me, I am a phone call away. It has been a pleasure serving with you.

You have some fan favorites here with you that I think we should hear from.

One of my all-time favorite people is Virginia Foxx, who is sitting beside me. Dr. Foxx is one of a kind, and you know from serving on her committee just how special she is.

Love you, too, buddy.

Mr. Speaker, I am standing beside this picture of Jackie Walorski, and anybody that ever knew Jackie knew this is the way she always looked. This bill today that we are talking about reveals who she really was and still is.

She was born on August 17, 1963, and she passed on August 3, 2022--59 years on Earth, 59 years of a servant's life.

Jackie Walorski never did anything for herself, to advance herself. Her main concerns were the mothers that she worried about and the children that she worried about because she knew that was America's greatest asset.

She knew that everything she did in her life was not about her but about others. She brought such a new concept to the floor, the people's House, to not only transform it in legislation but to change people's hearts.

She would never talk about herself as a Representative or a Congresswoman.

She was always here for others, not for herself.

When we look at legislation, from time to time, we start to think about what it is that we are really doing. What are we asking our taxpayers to invest in? If it is not our future, then why are we here?

The most important asset for Jackie Walorski was expectant mothers, infants, and childcare. She was truly unusual, but in her 59 years, she did so much to help so many.

I think for us to be here today on the people's House, on the floor, and to be able to share who she is--I said August 3 she passed. The only difference is Jackie is not here in person, but she is looking down from her spot in heaven and smiling the way she is smiling in this picture because that is the essence of who Jackie Walorski was. We all loved her, we all miss her, and we know we will never replace her, but we sure thank God for giving her to us for 59 years.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Drs. Wenstrup and Davis for bringing this forward, and I cannot believe in anything other than a complete ``yes'' from every single Member of the House on this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Texas for yielding.

I think at some time in whatever it is one does in life, there is a saying: It is rug-cutting time.

What does that mean?

It means to face the reality of what is in front of you right now. Don't try to paper over it, don't try to dismiss it, and don't ever think there is always going to be time sometime in the future to address a crisis that you face today.

I brought with me a picture of an iceberg, and this is the way our debt looks. You only see a very small portion above the surface, Mr. Speaker. Most of the iceberg is below the surface.

We talk about kitchen table economics.

What do we mean by that?

Well, we tell people: Hey, do you know what? We had really good revenues last year. It was $4.8 trillion.

People say: That sounds like a lot of money.

Yeah, but we went out, and we spent $6.1 trillion.

And they say: Oh, that doesn't sound like that much of a difference.

Kitchen table economics: You sit down with your wife. You look at what your earnings are, and you say: Well, gee, honey, we had a pretty good year. We made $48,000.

She looks and says: That is a lot of money.

And you say: Yeah, but we spent $61,000.

It is like: Oh, my God, we couldn't have possibly done that.

What allows you to borrow more money than you should have?

It is irresponsible lending, and it is irresponsible spending. When the United States of America makes a conscious decision to enter into overwhelming debt, then it will not only

rest on the shoulders of our children and grandchildren, it will rest on us.

We talk about spending and we talk about the size of our debt, and we say: Do you know what? In the last year and a half, it has gone up $9 trillion.

So how much is that then?

Well, roughly about $31 trillion in the red.

But then we say: Yeah, but do you know what? That covers a certain portion of our debt.

What it doesn't take into consideration is our unfunded liabilities. When you add in the unfunded liabilities, it is a whopping 123 or $124 trillion in debt. It is unimaginable. And if you could imagine it, Mr. Speaker, you would never be able to lay your head on a pillow at night and say that things are pretty good.

If we can't do this, we will just print more money. If you printed more money in the private sector: irresponsible. That is called counterfeiting. Why were we always so worried about counterfeiting? Because the market would get flooded with paper that had no real value.

What in the living hell has happened to our citizens? More importantly, what has happened to their leaders who they elected to come here and act in their best interest?

We are at a titanic moment. Our country is steaming full speed ahead at an iceberg that will sink us. We live in the most dangerous times our country has ever seen.

Budgets are the key to being able to sleep soundly at night. Budgets are the plan that you put together where you understand what your potential earnings could be and, more importantly, what you want to spend. Nobody in the private sector would ever develop a plan like the government does.

I was told when I first got here: Do you know your problem, Kelly? You think that a government should be run like a private business.

My answer to that was: No, no, no. What I know for a fact is that no private business could be run the way a government is.

Why? When we pass these huge spending bills, whose pocket does it come out of? Who pays every single penny of it? Who is looking at balances that we can't possibly meet and irresponsibly still decides to do that, oftentimes to gain the favor of our fellow citizens?

I hear constantly: Do you think we will get another check? Do you think we will get more help? I don't need the money, but I will put it in a bank account. Do you think we will get that?

I said: I hope to heck you don't because the money that you got from the government went on your total tax bill.

You do not ever receive anything from the United States Government, your State government, or your local government that comes without a price tag attached to it, and that price tag is attached to your wallet, and that wallet is suffering greatly under an unbelievable burden.

We sleep through this. We doze off. We refuse to believe where it is we are going.

When I say we are steaming full speed ahead, and we are going to have a titanic moment, anybody that understands what happened on the Titanic understands that the reason they had so many losses of life on the Titanic is they didn't have enough lifeboats to put passengers on.

This government is bankrupting America. Somebody said: Do you know what? I am worried about my grandchildren and even my children.

My answer to that is: Start worrying about yourself.

This is an imminent danger that lies right in front of us. Our inability to face it, our delusional belief that somehow everything is all right, and we are fuzzy, warm, and comfortable until the wolf comes to the door--what happened here? What happened to the greatest Nation the world has ever known with the most potential the world has ever known? The government decided that a lot of the assets we have, we are not going to use them. We are going to go to a foreign source for energy. Why would you use domestic energy? Why would you use something that is right beneath your feet?

I hear all the time: Well, we are going to work on all of the above.

I said: That is fine, but let's not forget everything that is below. Let's understand what our assets are and understand that we are drowning ourselves in debt.

I am accused sometimes of being too passionate, but I will tell you what, I will be damned if I am going to sit at the Thanksgiving table this year and look at those 10 grandchildren and my 4 children and say: Do you know what? Your mother and I really love you, but we just don't care about your future. We are cosigning your name to our debt. Hopefully, we will be gone before you face that.

My friends, this is not a Republican issue. This is not a Democrat issue. This is not a red issue. This is not a blue issue. This is a red, white, and blue American issue.

I ask my colleagues on the other side: Please don't accuse us of not wanting to work with you. For 2 years, we haven't been allowed to be at the table. We haven't been allowed to be in the room. We have not been allowed to be in the building. We were not even allowed to be in the town.

This false narrative that we will not reach across the aisle to work together, the one thing we will never do is to continue to damn our children and grandchildren and the future of this country with a debt that is so large, so over-encompassing, that there will no longer be a United States of America.

Anybody who tells me it is okay to spend $61,000 a year because you make $48,000, I would say you are a fool. We have been fools. Both sides of the aisle have spent unbelievable amounts of money that you can't justify other than the fact that every 2 years, there is an election. We try to put features and benefits together that will add value to who we are, knowing that it is a false narrative.

Our real challenge is not how much we spend. It is a matter that we refuse to address the bankruptcy that we are facing and very soon.

The great State of Texas is always a place that we look for leadership and talk about: How did Texas get to be Texas? Because of strong citizens.

I say to all of our colleagues: I don't care if you sit on the right side or the left side. Be on a side that is a responsible side.

If you can possibly say that what we are doing is fine and is in the best interest of the future of this country, I would say you must be working on some new math. You must be working out of some new program.

Nobody who has any sense, common sense, would look at what is going on right now--please look at this iceberg. We are at a titanic moment. Turning your head away, refusing to listen, refusing to be responsible to our fellow citizens will cause this country to sink.

It is time to wake up, America. Forget about being woke. Wake up. We are facing an incredible challenge and the demise of the greatest Nation the world has ever known.

I think the biggest part about life as you are growing up, you always tell your kids, don't ever bring shame on this family, and don't do irresponsible things that hurt not only yourself but others. The oath of office is one thing. There is another oath, and we answer to a much higher power that someday we will face. We will be held accountable for our irresponsible actions.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for holding this Special Order hour tonight. I hope our fellow citizens understand what exactly is happening.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative DelBene for being with me today.

We are really proud of this bill because it has taken a lot of time to get there, and it has taken so many people on both sides of the aisle looking at it and saying this is something that just makes sense.

The purpose of the Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act is very simple: it is to protect our seniors. They deserve fast, high- quality care when they see their doctor, not bureaucratic paperwork and delays. Unfortunately, our current prior authorization system often produces just that.

My office has heard countless stories of Pennsylvanians being affected by having their care delayed due to prior authorizations. One ophthalmology practice reported that they had problems getting both of a patients' eyes authorized for a basic operation because the system rejected the second eye as a duplicate.

At the University of Pittsburgh's Department of Neurosurgery, doctors can perform an advanced surgery with a Gamma Knife to control brain tumors. In many cases, these operations give patients life and more time. The problem is that it takes prior authorization, and care is delayed for way, way too long costing patients' valuable time.

As a result, patients lose confidence in the medical system, and they also begin to lose hope. That is why we are here today, to move the prior authorization process into the 21st century and give doctors and health insurance plans the tools they need to make these decisions more quickly.

The current system allows insurance plans to take weeks to review prior authorization requests, leaving patients waiting. The process is often manual, requiring fax machines, phone calls, and paper submissions, meaning doctors cannot easily appeal these decisions.

The Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act requires prior authorization decisions to be done faster, helping seniors get care more quickly. Most routinely approved prior authorization items and services will receive a real-time electronic response.

For nonroutinely approved items, doctors and patients will have clear expectations of how long they are going to need to wait for a response, allowing them to better coordinate their care.

Additionally, health insurance plans must begin to disclose data on how many prior authorizations they approve or deny, along with an analysis of how they made that decision.

Truthfully, I have seen many similar situations in the business I have been in my whole life. I am an automobile dealer, and when we are working on an owner's car under warranty, too often it is a negotiation with a manufacturer on what repairs we are able to do.

The manufacturer does their own time studies on how long they think it should take and what they think should be repaired. But oftentimes those time studies are on a brand new car or truck just off the assembly line. As we all know, living in western Pennsylvania, we have a lot of steep hills, and we go through really rough winters where there are a lot of things put on the road--salt and whatever else--that can corrode different parts once they are in operation.

It is the same story with insurance companies when we are doing covered auto body work. We have to give the insurance company the estimates before we ever touch a car or truck, and then continuously negotiate with them as we get into the tear-down of the vehicle and find other damage. We have to go back and get authorization to do that, and that holds up the process.

As much as people say, now, wait, wait, wait, don't compare cars and trucks and that warranty work to patients. You know what? It is the same thing. It is the same thing. You are denied access to care that you need today, not tomorrow, not some time in the future. There is no reason why you should have to wait for it, not in today's world, and not with the way we are able to improve all of this.

I know when I talked to Dr. Bera or Dr. Bucshon and especially with Ms. DelBene, we think: Why in the world are we working on old ways of getting answers as opposed to being able to get them today and get them more quickly?

I just think what we are doing makes sense. I would rely more on a technician who has expert experience than somebody who does time studies on something that isn't actually the duplicate of what we are looking to do.

This whole thing is about protecting our seniors, the people who have done the most for this generation and previous generations, who have really put their shoulders to the wheel and have never ever complained and always done what they think is best.

Why in the world would we make it harder for them to get the healthcare they deserve? Why? That makes absolutely no sense to any of us. This is not a red concern or a blue concern. It is all about red, white, and blue. It is about Americans. It is not Republicans or Democrats or Libertarians or anything else. It is about this body's obligation to come together on issues that are really critical.

There never should be this type of work that we have had to go through to get this done. And then all of a sudden last night, by the way, the CBO decided after 11 months to weigh in on how we would score this legislation. They waited until the 11th hour, and right after the 11th hour they pulled back what they had said they thought the cost was going to be.

I don't know how anybody runs a business like that.

I know if I give somebody an estimate or tell somebody something is going to be done at a certain time--and I know we make commitments to all of the people we represent, give them the right answer in the right time. Why make them wait for something that is so basic?

I know we always have this concern about fraud, waste, and abuse. My complaint really comes down to service. We can complain about a lot of things, but we cannot complain about what we owe our seniors.

We wrote and rewrote this bill over the course of the last several years to ensure it was as strong as possible, using everything that is available to us today to implement, to get answers quicker, not longer, not put people off, not tell them to wait in the waiting room, not tell them to stay on hold, but to get them an answer and get them the care that they need today.

Feedback is important. Honesty is more important. I know Ms. DelBene and Dr. Bera and Dr. Bucshon and so many of our colleagues agree the same way, and all the staff members that you mentioned.

This is not something that just happened very quickly and on the back of an envelope. This is something that a great deal of concern went into, a great deal of care went into, and a great deal of looking into went into.

So I am going to thank my colleagues, and I am going to ask everybody today, when this comes up for a vote, please vote for seniors. Please vote for all of those who have done so much for all of us. And take this opportunity to thank them in a way that really makes sense and, that is, by saying, you have played the game well; you have played the game long. You have done so much for all of us. Why don't we do something for all of you?

So I thank my colleague--it has been great--and all our colleagues for getting on board on this. It has been a really good example of how, when we actually work together on good policy and don't worry about the politics of it, amazing, amazing what can get done for the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to take a moment also to thank the Regulatory Relief Coalition because they have been working hand in hand with us trying to contact as many members as they can. And today is an example of when we work together, what we can get done.

Mr. Speaker, I present one of the doctors in our Doctors Caucus from North Carolina, Dr. Murphy, to give his actually on-the-job, on-the- field experience of what it is like to try to work through this massive group of--I don't know what you call these people. They are hard to work with and they don't represent us. They do represent something else. I think we need to represent just our folks back home.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Murphy).

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

I know Dr. Bera is leaving the floor right now.

So often, when I am home and I am here, we always pick winners and losers and, somehow, that becomes the main objective of who won, who lost. So we are worried today about the score. It doesn't matter on the score because everybody wins on this. There is no loser on this.

And if we can't look to the people who have supported us our whole lives and have created opportunities that exist in this country on their backs, what in the world are we doing here?

Well, I can't tell you how much I appreciate the opportunity to be with Ms. DelBene. This is incredible to get this done today.

I am urging every single Member to vote for this. Please throw out your scorecard and look at the picture in your wallet of who it is that parented you or grandparented you and say you know what, wouldn't it be nice to give them something back after they gave us their whole life? And let them have some peace of mind.

I don't think there is anything greater in your later years than peace of mind and being able to know that I am getting healthcare when I need it. I am not going to have to wait for somebody someplace else to determine whether I should get it.

So it has been a pleasure working with you. It has been a pleasure working with all of our colleagues. And for Dr. Marshall, who used to sit here with us but now is over in the senior area of this magnificent model--although, I think he is too young to be there. Now, I am sure my older Senators will say, hey, Kelly, please don't call us old. I won't. Let's just say the more seasoned Members.

But I am glad we can wrap this up on a really good note. I can't tell you how good I feel about this, that we can go

home and tell those people that we represent--I don't care how they vote. All I want them to know is we care about what they have done for us, and we are going to be able to supply them some peace of mind.

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

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Texas, and I hate to see him leave because he has been so productive.

Madam Speaker, it is interesting. We had the talk and hear it going back and forth about what the IRS is not going to do. I would just tell my fellow citizens--and I am not going to talk to the other side because we shouldn't be doing that anyway.

There is something wrong whenever we look at the money that is being spent to hire agents for enforcement. I would tell my fellow citizens: Be afraid. Be very afraid. If the events of this week don't shake you to the bottom as to what this government can do to you whenever it chooses to do it and however it chooses to do it, understand that this agency, the IRS, is the most feared agency in the United States Government. It is incredible the power that it wields.

It is incredible that it is going to increase the number of enforcement officers. They are not coming in to help with the processing because all of us in Congress, including my friends on the other side, have been doing the work of the IRS for the IRS. They haven't been back to work full time for 2\1/2\ years.

Madam Speaker, I urge my friends on both sides of the aisle to vote ``no'' on this monstrosity that does not do anything about inflation but continues to harass hardworking American taxpayers.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Oklahoma for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, the distinguished leader was exactly right in his comments, but I would just like people to think about something.

Every single problem we face today globally emanated right here, from this same floor. Tax policy, regulation policy, drove most of these businesses offshore. They didn't leave because they didn't like America. They left because it looked like America didn't like them.

We have seen the erosion of so much of what it is that we are, all because of policy that emanated right from this same floor. Now, we are trying to do something to correct bad policy in the past.

I am in the automobile business. We can't finish building cars because we don't have the product necessary to finish them. Most of the people we talk to said we didn't leave America by choice. We were forced offshore by policy. The Speaker and I know this because we are big fans of the steel business.

The only thing I would ask my friends on this side and my colleagues on the other side, there are consequences for past performance. This bill in no way is perfect, and Mr. Hoyer is exactly correct about that. But the question is: What is it that we are trying to fix, and whose problem is it? The answer is: It is our problem because it is happening in real time on our watch. We have to do something. Doing nothing is not the answer to how we fix this bad situation.

But we can't do everything from the House. We have to rely on the Senate to participate. Then, we look at what we had initially started and say: What did they do to the piece that we were trying to get done?

Listen, I know the debate can get heated. We can talk about how patriotic we are, and we can talk about what the future is not only for ourselves but for our children and our grandchildren and our great- grandchildren.

Mr. Speaker, I suggest that all of us need to take a good long look in the mirror and see who it is that can change the future.

There is no sense in talking about what happened in the past. The past is the past, and we cannot reclaim it. We can just deal with it.

We have a huge problem on our hands today because we have allowed the technology to leave; we have allowed the production to leave; we have allowed the product to leave; and then we come back and say now we have to do something to get it back.

This may be the bill that does that. I don't know. I know from certain States, this is a must-have for some of our colleagues. It is a must-have for us to remain competitive. We are in a global economy.

I can tell you this: I wish this was the same bill that we had proposed back when General Motors was facing bankruptcy because we know this body--not us, we weren't here--lent them the money to stay alive, and they paid it all back in full with interest.

This is not that same process, and that is why we are so caught, trying to figure out what we should do to face this part of the business. What can we do here?

Mr. Speaker, it comes down to this: We are not Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, or Independents in this House. We are truly the American people. It is up to us to fix problems that are bad, even if we started them ourselves.

I just hope that all of our colleagues sit back and take a long look at what is being proposed today and try to figure out, not for themselves but for the people they represent--and most of us represent three-quarters of a million people--what is in the best interest of the people you represent, what is in the best interest of the Nation that you live in, and what is in the best interest of the future of America.

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 topic of this Special Order.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of the 2,500 unborn lives we lose to abortion each day who cannot stand for themselves. That is nearly half a million little boys and little girls in the United States alone this year. These numbers don't reflect, though, and take into consideration self-administered chemical abortions.

Last month, the Supreme Court announced what the pro-life movement was waiting half a century to hear: Roe v. Wade is overturned. As a proud pro-life grandfather of 10, I enthusiastically applaud the Justices for recognizing that this terrible relic from 1973 has no place in 2022.

Roe was both a legal and moral abomination from the beginning. It mocked our Nation's Constitution and paved the way for the abortion of more than 63 million innocent babies in the years since.

The men who first decided Roe invented the right to abortion out of thin air. By adding an extra line to our Constitution, they ignored one of the first sentences of the Declaration of Independence, which holds that we are endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

With Roe in the dustbin of history, the abortion question returns to the democratic arena where it belongs. The most contentious of issues can now be properly debated and deliberated at both the Federal and State levels, where, ideally, the most logical and persuasive arguments can triumph and translate into new law.

Let us have clear eyes to see exactly what science shows us, that fetuses in the womb are human beings who develop with each passing second. These innocent children have their own DNA and soon develop hands, feet, eyes, and lips. They can also feel pain. Just as importantly, they have the potential to grow up, flourish, and achieve amazing dreams. Let us have the compassion to give them that chance.

For those of us in elected office who sincerely believe that human life is a sacred gift from God in need of society's protection, our position is no

longer theoretical. We now have a pressing responsibility to examine how public policy can best be crafted to adequately accomplish our stated goal.

I believe we already have an answer. When an expectant mother visits a doctor for an ultrasound, the image of a beating heart is the first confirmation that a child has been conceived. When someone is involved in a severe accident, a medic will check right away to see if there is a pulse to make sure the victim is alive. In short, a heartbeat means a life.

Now, to legislate consistently with this truth, I introduced the Heartbeat Protection Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. This bill would legally prohibit future abortions from being performed if a preborn child's heartbeat can be detected, with the exception for when a mother's life is in danger. It is a science-based, humanity- respecting solution suited to the new landscape in which we find ourselves.

The post-Roe world is here. As legislators in each State determine the extent to which they wish to defend life, pro-life Members of Congress can simultaneously take action to make our beloved country a place where both children waiting to be born and their mothers are acknowledged and safeguarded.

Mr. Speaker, tonight, we have a very distinguished group of Members with us who will also speak on this subject. This doesn't have to turn into an angry debate. This doesn't have to turn into something that people get so upset with each other about that they can't even sit down and talk intelligently about what is going on.

If we cannot see the value of life every day in every single person, then what have we witnessed this year, just this summer--the horror that has taken place in our own cities, the loss of life that we have experienced, the sincere sorrow that this country feels. Yet, we have a blind eye and a deaf ear to the cries of the unborn.

Do they not deserve that same type of consideration that every human being deserves?

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. McClain).

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce), another member of the fantastic Pennsylvania conference group and a strong defender of life.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson), a member of the Republican leadership group.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Johnson.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa). I think we came into Congress in 2011 and it has been a pleasure serving with you. I appreciate your comments tonight on this very important issue.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Grothman), my friend and a strong defender of life.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Grothman.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Biggs), a great consistent defender of life.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Biggs.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Mann), another great defender of pro-life and consistent member of pro-life.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert), somebody who has been a friend of mine since way back in 2011, and who has never stopped fighting for life since he got here.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the great State of Georgia (Mr. Carter), who is another great defender of life.

We have been defending life for so long with such great patience and such great prayer. It has always been done in a peaceful manner.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the great State of Georgia (Mr. Allen). Again, I thank the Representative for

being with us tonight. He is a great defender of life.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Representative for his remarks. Tomorrow is a big day for all of us.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the great State of Mississippi (Mr. Guest). As we all ponder tonight what tomorrow will bring, I thank Mr. Guest for being with us and defending life in every step of the way.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Representative for his comments.

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

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate Representative Rose's being here tonight.

Mr. Speaker, I will use some of the time we have remaining. I know that we always want to debate this proposed legislation about what is good about it and what is bad about it. Oftentimes, we use languages to actually disguise what it is that we are actually talking about.

Tomorrow as we will debate and vote on the Women's Health Protection Act, abortion is the only medical procedure where two people go into the doctor's office and only one comes out alive. I know that in this people's House we have had heavy debate, and I know that both sides are divided on it and sometimes the language gets out of hand. It gets too hateful.

My colleagues on the other side have often said to me:

Look, we believe like you believe. We believe that life is

sacred. We believe that every--every--child has a chance, and

that unborn child is waiting to be born and waiting to

experience all that life has to offer. But, you see, the

Supreme Court took that option away from me. My personal

preference would be life, but the Supreme Court took that

option away from me.

So tomorrow, as we debate the Women's Health Protection Act and we hear a lot of discussion that goes back and forth and defending and then tearing apart and people adding to and subtracting from, we come to a lot of different things.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to share with you that last weekend while we were home, I had the opportunity to visit in Erie, Pennsylvania, in the district that I represent, I visited a women's care center. This is a center where too often they are described as people who are trying to discourage pregnant mothers from actually giving birth. They are trying to lead them into a different direction.

I just want to say this: the people who man these agencies give up a day of their life to come in and help counsel women who are going probably through some of the most difficult times of their life. Maybe it is not the right time for them to have that child. Maybe there is a financial problem, and it is just not right right now.

Maybe there is something else that stands in their way, and they are saying: Well, I am so alone. I am by myself. I don't know how I would handle this.

To those ladies who go through that, I would say that there are options available to you. The adoption option is there. We have thousands upon thousands of people who would love to adopt a child and to give it a loving home and to help nurture it as it goes through its lifecycles. We also have foster care that is available.

I know that I have talked to too many women who have experienced the

anguish of going through an abortion and then later on thinking that they made the biggest mistake of their life and holding that guilt feeling in their life.

I would just like to suggest that we are a very forgiving society. We are a people who say:

Look, don't let that ruin your life. Don't let that ruin

your life. There is forgiveness, there is grace, and there is

mercy.

We know that. But as we stand here tonight in the people's House--in the people's House--how did we ever get to this point?

How did we ever in the United States of America decide that all life is not precious?

I mentioned earlier some of the horrific instances that have taken place just in the last few weeks, in the last few months, and in the last few years.

I know that, on Wednesdays, a lot of Representatives wear red, and that is to bring about the remembrance of the Boko Haram and the little girls who were kidnapped and never returned. It is always about ``we need to get our girls back.''

We have such open hearts, and we have such understanding in some cases. Then in other cases, we just close our eyes. We plug our ears. We say: No, no. You don't understand. In this situation, the conception of that child was not what we were looking for. That is not what we wanted, but it happened, and now we have a problem. What are we going to do with this little girl or this little boy?

I know people look away. They look to the sky, and they look to the walls, and they look to the floor, and they say: Look, my personal preference would be--but the Supreme Court made a decision. The Supreme Court has just righted a very wrong decision.

I hope that, at some point, the greatest defender of life in the history of the world, the greatest defender of liberty and freedom in the history of the world, the United States of America, would take a look at the course and the direction it has been taking for the last 50 years.

Millions upon millions upon millions of little boys and little girls have been denied the right to life. Where in our history did we ever come up with this idea that abortion is okay?

Look, I said earlier, I understand there are times in your life--I can just tell you this: As a father of four and a grandfather of 10, between our firstborn child and our second-born child, there was a pregnancy that took place. It was an ectopic pregnancy. My wife has wondered forever what that child would have been like had she gone full term.

I want to take a moment, Mr. Speaker, as we close now. In this building, in this room, in this town, tomorrow, we will have a chance to look at what it is we are doing and where we are going. I would just ask it all to be prayerful, peaceful, and understand that this is an issue that we can no longer close our eyes to.

If it is your personal preference, if it is something that you think is right for life, then, please, walk away from any political bend that you may have and look at the policies.

We are here for the best interests of the United States and the best interests of our American citizens.

Mr. Speaker, I thank you so much for your indulgence. I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, as the Nation awaits the Supreme Court's official ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson, which many of us pray will overturn Roe v. Wade, we have witnessed a despicable wave of leftwing threats and violence against our judges, our churches, pro- life groups, and crisis pregnancy centers.

Let's be very clear on this. Pregnancy centers are 100 percent noble and heroic organizations that proudly serve vulnerable mothers at their most critical time of need. They are an invaluable resource across America. Because these centers save lives and not end them, they find themselves under attack.

Since May 2, the day Justice Alito's draft decision was leaked, there have been nearly 30 documented attacks on these centers, including, but not limited to:

A pregnancy center in Madison, Wisconsin, torched by a Molotov cocktail on May 8.

Capitol Hill Crisis Pregnancy Center right here in Washington, D.C., vandalized with blood red paint on June 2.

Pregnancy Resource Center in Buffalo, New York, firebombed on June 7.

Pregnancy Resource Center in Gersham, Oregon, firebombed on June 10.

And, of course, the attempted assassination of Justice Kavanaugh outside his home.

Since May 2020, more than 130 acts of vandalism, or worse, have been committed across 29 States and the District of Columbia against pro- life Catholic properties alone. The proponents of these attacks are radical leftwing groups that are openly vowing to terrify pro-life leaders and institutions into backing down from defending the unborn.

They have made threats like, ``If abortions aren't safe, neither are you.'' They have promised ``to take increasingly drastic measures'' and that ``those measures may not come in the form of something so easily cleaned up as a fire or graffiti.'' They are currently calling for a ``night of rage'' after the Supreme Court announces its decision.

When fear, intimidation, and violence are deployed to compel legitimate government institutions to act a certain way, it must be called what it is: terrorism.

These recent threats and attacks must be totally condemned, investigated, and prosecuted. This violence must end.

Our Nation needs to hear from the leaders of our Democratic Party that these extremists call home: Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Schumer, and President Biden have so far refused to utter even a single word of disapproval or discouragement. To them, Americans of goodwill plead: Your silence is deafening. Speak up.

To the Supreme Court Justices, to their families, and to the millions and millions of pro-life Americans from coast to coast, I say this: Be not afraid. We are most likely on the cusp of an epic victory. It will be the culmination of 50 years of work. We must not back down or tire, for the end of Roe v. Wade will mean the beginning of a new era in which our voices and our passion are needed more than ever.

For those of us in elected office who sincerely believe that human life is a sacred gift from God and in need of society's protection, our position is no longer theoretical. We now have a pressing responsibility to examine how public policy can best be crafted to adequately accomplish that goal. I believe we already have an answer.

When an expectant mother visits a doctor for an ultrasound, the image of a beating heart is the first confirmation that a child has been conceived.

When someone is involved in a severe accident, a medic will check for a pulse to make sure the victim is alive. In short, a heartbeat means life.

To legislate consistently to this truth, I introduced the Heartbeat Protection Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. This bill will legally prohibit future abortions from being performed if a pre-born child's heartbeat can be detected, with the exception of when a mother's life is in danger. It is a science-based, humanity-respecting solution suited to the new landscape in which we now find ourselves. The post-Roe world is here.

As legislators in each State determine the extent in which they wish to defend life, pro-life Members of Congress can simultaneously take action to make our beloved country a place where children waiting to be born and their mothers are acknowledged and safeguarded. As we all move forward, may clarity, compassion, and our consciences, guide us.

Madam Speaker, we have watched 50 years of the pro-life movement. I have attended many of the pro-life marches here in D.C. There is nothing more peaceful, there is nothing more prayerful than the assembly of hundreds of thousands of Americans from around the country coming together to march in support of the pro-life measures.

I would hope at this point in our history, as we watch the rest of the world unravel and as we watch these horrible things happen around our country, we say to ourselves: It is time to stop the violence. It is time to look forward. It is time to save the lives of the unborn.

After millions and millions of children have been aborted, it is time to start saving them. They are as important as any other life on Earth.

Madam Speaker, tonight we are going to be taking some time to talk about life. I know today on the floor of the people's House we observed the one millionth death from COVID.

When I came to work today, I saw that the flags were at half-mast, and I didn't know why they were at half-mast, and then I found out why. It was because we were observing the loss of life during the time of COVID-19. Loss of life is always a critical issue in the people's House and in the United States of America.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Keller), my good friend from the 12th Congressional District and the young man who I stood with today as we did take that moment to observe the one millionth death.

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Pennsylvania. I think today as we look at this, and I know it has become such a horrible thing to even talk about, so when we enter this floor, the people's floor, the people's House, and we are not willing to talk about an issue like this and do it civilly, but it erupts in some type of anger that just, quite frankly, is not understandable.

Madam Speaker, I am sure many of the folks watching at home know the Supreme Court is in the midst of one of the most important cases in American history, but many folks might not fully understand the issue before the Court. So I wanted to take a moment to lay out the facts.

In 2018, the State of Mississippi passed a law protecting life after 15 weeks in the womb. After this law was passed, the Jackson Women's Health Organization, the last remaining abortion place in the State of Mississippi, filed suit against the State, alleging the 15-week protection was unconstitutional.

The Jackson Women's Health Organization believed there is a constitutional right to an abortion, a right legal experts have said for years that doesn't really exist. But despite this, the Jackson Women's Health Organization has persisted in arguing their case. So after years of trials and multiple rounds in the Federal courts, the Supreme Court decided to step in and settle the question once and for all, which brings us to today.

Now, the question before the Court fundamentally is whether there exists a constitutional right to an abortion. We believe the answer is clear, and Justice Alito and his colleagues appear to agree.

The Declaration of Independence affirmed our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Nowhere in the Constitution is there a right to abortion. I know there are times in our lives that it is inconvenient for the birth of a child, but the right to life is fundamental.

One last thing I think is worth noting about this Supreme Court: The case was brought by the Jackson Women's Health Organization, which is the last abortion clinic remaining in Mississippi. The organization, which has devoted itself to aborting lives, unborn lives, chooses to call itself a women's health organization despite the fact that more than half of all the lives they end each day are female. Little boys and little girls are aborted each day within those walls, yet abortionists who work there continue to fight for their right to abort.

That is a point we must never forget. Abortion is not healthcare. It is the only medical procedure, as my friend Mr. Keller just pointed out, where at least one of the patients always dies.

Ultimately, the leak at the Supreme Court was unacceptable, and we need to get to the bottom of it, but we shouldn't let that leak distract us from the real issue here. That is the victory, the possible victory for the unborn.

The truth is, we don't really know how many babies die each year from abortion, but the best estimates are that 906,000 babies will die in the United States this year alone. That is nearly two babies per minute.

We are engaged in this great observation of what is taking place in Ukraine, and we talk every day about the loss of lives, and we talk about how could the Russians be so cruel to bomb a hospital where there are expectant mothers and end the life not only of the expectant mother but also of the unborn child. But that is what we worry about. So we turn our eyes to Ukraine, and we shade our eyes from what is happening in the United States of America. Because if we don't see it, we don't have to admit that it is happening.

Look, about 870,000 babies are estimated to have been aborted last year, and that number keeps getting higher and higher, but this statistic doesn't capture the true numbers. Some States don't report accurate information or require abortionists to collect data. The CDC doesn't properly catalog this information, either.

Chemical abortions further complicate the picture because these are drugs that can be taken at home with no doctor's oversight and no data reporting at all.

Totally unrecognized, totally uncounted, totally ignored. All of this results in an incomplete patchwork of abortion data that hides the true number of deaths.

Contrary to the claims of the abortion industry, chemical abortion drugs are not safer or easier for expecting mothers. Women experience severe pains, heavy and prolonged bleeding, vomiting, and infections that can become as severe as sepsis. These complications can be deadly for expecting mothers.

One study found that one-fifth of all chemical abortions results in complications. It also found that chemical abortions are even more deadly than regular abortions. So chemical abortions are not safe, they are not safer. Yet, the abortion industry keeps promoting them to women as an easier alternative to eliminate the life of an unborn baby. Isn't it great to put it as an ``easier alternative''?

Now, despite this evidence, in December 2021, the Biden administration announced it was removing the requirement that the chemical abortion drug, mifepristone, be dispensed to a pregnant woman by a healthcare provider. Look, this change does possess a serious threat to women across America and has serious implications for the unborn. So many on this side have always been champions of life, all life, from its conception to its natural end.

I have a piece of legislation called the Heartbeat Act, which was introduced by former Representative, Steve King. And this is a very simple bill. No abortion can be performed if a heartbeat is detected, except in cases where a mother's life is directly in danger.

And I hear people tell me, Listen, you shouldn't be using that as an indicator. Yet, any time I have ever gone in for my medical procedure, either the doctor or whomever is there helping them, the first thing they do is grab my wrist and try to see if my heart is beating through the number of pulses, or they put a stethoscope on. And I am assuming they are trying to find out, is this guy still alive. The way they do it is by listening to my heart through a medical device.

We worry so much about life. We worry so much about protecting life. We worry so much about this horrible type of activity that is taking place all over our globe, and we are more concerned about what the Russians are doing in Ukraine than what we are doing right here in the United States of America. The numbers pale in comparison to what we are doing.

Now, we can continue to ignore this, and we can continue to argue over this, but we can't defy the one basic fact: That we are eliminating a life. It is undebatable.

Now, I think as Republicans, we always believe in the sanctity of life. And I will guarantee you there are people on the other side of the aisle, many of them feel the same way, they are just limited on that which they can speak. And it goes back to the old adage, There are no secrets in our house. There are just a lot of things we don't talk about.

Now, we can never compromise on this. I tell people all the time, Look, I know there are times in your life where this is an inconvenient pregnancy, and that the birth of this child could be an inconvenient burden on the family. That is why we have the adoption option. That is why we have foster care.

We have thousands upon thousands upon thousands of loving families that would love to take in this new, little baby girl or this new, little baby boy; it isn't that there is not a home for them. And while it may be inconvenient at the time, there is nothing more precious than life.

Mr. Keller referred to this board that we brought in that said: Abortions as of May 12, 2022, 327,649.

Now, we went a little step further. We are talking about deaths by decision. Since we started this talk, 17 more lives have been ended. So the 327,649 more accurately should read 327,666.

Madam Speaker, I would ask all of our colleagues to stop and think about what we have done. Some of us fight for life and others of us fight for another issue. I'm not sure I ever understood it, because usually where it ends up is a screaming match as opposed to a debate in saying, What in the world are you thinking? Why do we allow the slaughter of these innocents?

Now, I know people don't like it because they say, I don't like you describing me as that and I don't like being accused of that, and so what I would rather do is not talk about it at all.

Madam Speaker, I had the honor when I first got elected to Congress to have lunch with Justice Scalia. We talked about the life issue. Justice Scalia looked at me and said, You know what, Mr. Kelly, I find it abominable that 50 States who have the responsibility and the jurisdiction choose to give the issue to nine former lawyers to make a decision for them.

On this issue, we should never, ever cower away from it. We should never, ever deny that it is happening. We should never, ever say that my personal preference is for life. But the Supreme Court deemed that it was their responsibility.

The real test will take place if the decision goes back to the States and the States and their elected officials make the decision. At that point, I would expect those who say, Well, my personal preference would be to stand up and defend life because the Supreme Court is no longer your barrier, no longer your excuse, and won't be taken into consideration.

Madam Speaker, we have these conversations from time to time, and we find them very uncomfortable, and we talk about things like, well, words matter, words hurt. Can't we just avoid this?

By doing so, we are ignoring the fact that we are ending a human life. I just tell all the Members that I come in contact, Aren't you glad that your parents were pro-life, and you had the chance to actually weigh in on it in your time and make a difference?

It is an issue I don't think should ever go away, and I think it is the most important issue that faces us today. I am very concerned about what is going on in Ukraine. I am more concerned with what is happening in the United States of America and our fellow citizens looking at us to say: You need to make a decision. And we are saying to them, your individual States with the people you elected should have that debate and they should make that decision for you.

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

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to address some of the biggest problems facing the United States today and, quite frankly, the world.

As the war between Russia and Ukraine wages on, many Americans have been quickly reminded of just how global our economy really is.

Now, prior to the war, Russia provided the United States with 8 percent of our Nation's oil and refined products. A war involving Russia can suddenly spike fuel prices at your local gas station. Like many nationwide, drivers in my home district of western Pennsylvania have seen gasoline at over $4 a gallon for well over a month.

The interruption of our Nation's oil supply and subsequent skyrocketing prices are just the latest reminder that we need to refocus our energy policies in Washington and produce more energy right here at home in America.

Let's go back to May 2021, when two things happened: the United States imported a record amount of Russian oil, and President Biden waived sanctions on Nord Stream 2. That is the Russian natural gas pipeline set to supply much of Europe with energy.

Now, 4 months earlier the President canceled the Keystone XL pipeline between the United States and Canada. That pipeline would have delivered an additional 830,000 barrels of crude oil a day. That is 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day.

That would have gone to U.S. refineries, and it would have created thousands and thousands of jobs. That is more oil than the United States imports from Russia each day. This is a no-brainer. Just bring back the pipeline. It is so easy to do and so easy to institute.

Why would we not do that?

Why would we not be energy independent?

We can't depend on bad foreign actors such as Russia, Venezuela, or Iran to help provide our Nation's energy. Above all I applaud the collective effort right here in Washington to stop bankrolling the Russian war machine by buying their products.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations, revenue from the energy sector is responsible for more than 40 percent of Russia's federal budget. Some quick, back-of-the-envelope math, the 8 percent of Russian oil we imported equates to 672,000 barrels of oil per day.

But this moment calls for a broader push to end our reliance on foreign energy sources.

To start, President Biden should reverse his executive order banning the Keystone pipeline.

Next, we must return to Trump-era energy policies that made the U.S. energy independent. To amend the former President's famous tag line, let's change it to make North America great again.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 61 percent of U.S. crude oil imports come from Canada. Another 11 percent comes from Mexico. Seventy-two percent comes from our neighbors to the north and our neighbors to the south.

We should be expanding oil imports from our allies and neighbors rather than paying our adversaries who can hold our energy sector hostage. Doing so not only makes economic sense, but it improves relations with those closest to us and further strengthens our national security by becoming less dependent on bullies like Russia, Venezuela, and Iran.

Now, on the other hand, President Biden has single-handedly made Americans poorer and our Nation's security weaker during his first year in office. His anti-fossil fuel, Green New Deal wish list has placed unnecessary burdens on the oil and gas industry.

Even as gas prices are reaching record highs here nationwide, just last month President Biden had announced that he is pausing decisions about new Federal oil and gas drilling as part of his plan to tackle climate change. And that is just the beginning.

So far, President Biden has announced the release of 80 million barrels of oil from the Nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Just last week President Biden announced he will release up to another 180 million barrels of oil over the next 6 months in an effort to drive down gas prices. That doesn't drive down gas prices.

That theory really sounds good, but, Mr. Speaker, I want you to think about where that oil is coming from. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is to be used in times of a national emergency when we don't have a supply. It is not used to just try and rack up some cheap political points by saying: I am doing this so you won't have to pay that much at the pump.

It is not working. It never will work.

Now, on November 23, the administration released 50 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average price of gas dropped by a whopping 2 cents. In following days, by December 6, it dropped another 3 cents. So we saved a nickel, but we attacked our Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

Now, as of March 25 the reserve supply was 568 million barrels, meaning that President Biden is ready to take one-third of our Nation's reserve and use them for his short-term political gain that has already proven to not lower gas prices for America but has weakened the reserve.

Now, keep in mind, the purpose of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is to counter severe supply chain disruptions and enhance national security. It is not to make your polls look better, Mr. President.

The 80 million barrels the President previously released are worth only about 4 days of U.S. oil consumption. Only the President can decide to withdraw oil from or refill the reserve. What is even more frightening so far is China has hardly tapped their oil reserves. President Biden's shortsighted decision-making is dangerously harming our national security.

Now, I am proud to represent the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, a place once deemed and called the Saudi Arabia of natural gas. Pennsylvania produces 21 percent of the natural gas extracted in the United States. That is second only to Texas, according to the Energy Information Administration.

In 2020, the Energy Information Administration adds that U.S. dry natural gas production was about 10 percent greater than U.S. total natural gas consumption. That means we can export natural gas that we produce creating energy security for other nations, notably our European allies who are currently dependent on Russia for their natural gas, and it forges a stronger foreign policy in the process.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the spike in fuel costs go hand in hand with American foreign policy. If we are dependent on bad actors for energy, then we are subjecting ourselves to their demands. But if we can supply the world with affordable energy, then we can strengthen our international ties and reinforce relationships instead of falling behind. Most importantly, we give the American people a greater sense of security that Russia so desperately seeks to have only for itself.

On the topic of foreign policy, Mr. Speaker, I want to quote a great fellow Pennsylvanian, Benjamin Franklin, who said: ``By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.''

Now, I have thought an awful lot about our Founding Father's words as we watched current events unfold around the world. So much of what we are seeing right now mirrors itself in history.

Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is a stark reminder that bullies like Vladimir Putin will stop at nothing to achieve their end game to upend democracy and freedom while chilling all the opposition in the process.

This type of takeover carries a precedent. Putin's quest to conquer Ukraine should remind all of us of what happened in the 1930s and 1940s when Adolph Hitler began a similar pursuit across Europe. Now, for far too long the free world watched from the sidelines hoping that European forces could prevent further escalation only to find that Hitler and the Axis Powers were relentless. Thankfully, the Allied forces defeated the global bullies of that era.

Now, over 80 years later, we can consult history for potential answers to modern power struggles. As Russia's military assault on Ukraine continues, the United States and NATO allies must respond together. After all, NATO, which is a collection of over 30 nations, was formed in 1949 after World War II to prevent what?

Soviet aggression.

NATO has a responsibility to step up. Those member countries have a responsibility to step in. All in all, hand in hand, the United States--which is also the first responder to anything that goes wrong in the world--needs to have help from other people, not America alone, but America with our allies.

NATO's purpose remains as important today as it was back then. A powerful, unified response has served the free world well throughout history.

Now, much like World War II, we have existing or looming conflicts in multiple regions or theaters of the world including Asia. Today, China is threatening Taiwan. Now, as we are deflected from watching what is going to happen in Taiwan and watching the dangerous situation in Taiwan by what is going on in Ukraine--and I don't say we should take our eyes off of what is going on in Ukraine--we should just not think that that is the only theater that we have to be concerned with.

Taiwan is one of our major allies, and in recent months multiple reports indicate that China has been quietly conducting combat readiness drills near Taiwan, an island territory that China still claims to own. This matters for two reasons: First, the Chinese are watching the world's response to Putin's attempt at a land grab in Ukraine because China is threatening to take over their own neighbor as well.

Secondly, this could directly impact the American consumer. Ninety- two percent of the world's supply of advanced semiconductor chips--used in everything from automobiles to cellphones--are made in Taiwan.

If we have learned nothing from the COVID pandemic, it is that we cannot depend on other people around the world to supply us with those things that we need the most. It is a fool's errand to think that somehow this ends well. It does not. It ends terribly for us, and it ends terribly for the free world.

Any large-scale attack on Taiwan means these chips would likely become very scarce as almost everything else in the world is right now, and in some cases probably unavailable altogether. That is why I am cosponsoring the Facilitating American-Built Semiconductors, or the FABS Act, with Congressman Mike McCaul.

This piece of legislation allows for a new tax credit through 2032 for investment in any semiconductor manufacturing facility and semiconductor-designed expenditures right here at home.

What an unusual concept: to invest in American technology with American workers to make America safer and stronger, not somebody a world away from us. Let's do it right here at home. Let's do it right here at home.

Now, currently we make just 12 percent of the world's semiconductor chip supply. That is hard for me to imagine that we knew at the time how necessary the semiconductor chips were, but we had kind of a blind eye and a deaf ear to what it was that manufacturers were talking about. We said: Do you know what? For a couple of pennies we can save, let's send them over to Taiwan and have them make it. And we walked away from what is so critical to us.

Now, the scary thing is that these are just the crises before us right now. History reflects how a robust American foreign policy has significantly shaped the world, specifically the Western Hemisphere. So when we talk about the Western Hemisphere, this is one of the things I think that is probably going more unnoticed than anything: In the 1800s President Monroe knew that in its infancy the United States was developing at a very quick rate, and it really looked like something that other places around the world would look at with envy and say: Do you know what? They are getting stronger every day, and they are getting better every day. Maybe we need to get over there and colonize. Maybe we need to get involved there.

So the Monroe Doctrine came into effect, and the whole idea behind that was, let's make sure that people around the world cannot make an effort to come in and get into our Western Hemisphere and cause us great danger.

So the Monroe Doctrine came out. But then as things went on and we got more powerful and we had more and more going for us, all of a sudden, the world looked to us, and they just didn't take a slight glance at us, but they looked at us with covetousness. They looked at us with who we were and what we were becoming and all the valuable things that were right here in our hemisphere.

So Teddy Roosevelt says: You know what? I am going to put together the Roosevelt Corollary that really establishes guidelines for any intervention in the United States or our Western Hemisphere.

The content within these policies largely addressed actions by European nations or the inactions of Latin American nations. But I believe they are relevant, once again, and are worth further review, and here is why.

If you were to take a look at the Western Hemisphere and just take a real broad look at it and say: Okay, fine, let's take a close look. South America, Central America, up into the triangle, the deepwater ports in Cuba, and both ends of the Panama Canal all have significant foreign countries--and they are mainly China.

People tell me: You don't need to worry about that Panama Canal; China is not really taking it over. I say: You know what? If you don't read history, you don't study history, you are doomed to repeat it.

Why would we not look at what is going on right now in our Western Hemisphere and say, we have put things into place to protect us from foreign intervention.

I want to tell you, you look at the Western Hemisphere, South America, Central America, the triangle, the

deepwater ports in Cuba, that would be ideal for heavy military use, and both ends of the Panama Canal. If you don't think that is a threat to American security, then you need to wake up. We are in great danger right now and not knowing it.

First of all, the Chinese are not very quiet about what they are trying to do. They have a theory that they want to take over the world. They don't whisper about it; they don't sneak around about it; they just do what they want to do. Their presence in Africa should be a great awakening for us.

We have crippled ourselves with regulations and sanctions on so many things that we need, and I don't know for what reason, other than somehow we think that we are smarter than everybody else and we know that we can protect ourselves. And the question is: Really, how? And the answer is: Well, we really can't.

I guess our answer will be what it always is: We will write a strong letter, and Jinping will get it. We will tell them: Please, stay out of our hemisphere and please stop trying to influence the rest of the world for evil. And we will tell Putin: You need to stop doing what you are doing in Ukraine.

At some point, we will actually read history and say we have been down this road before, but we failed to take action at a time that was absolutely critical and pushed it on and pushed it out of sight, and the price we paid was incredible. Let's not do that again.

There is an old saying that is: To be foretold is to be forewarned. With everything going on in the world today, we hear a lot of people using the term ``world war III.'' I am not here tonight telling you that that is what is going to happen. I am here telling you tonight that America and the free world have to understand that we have seen this action before. We know what lies ahead of us, and we know the cost of not addressing it early. We can do it through policy, but peace always comes through strength, not through weakness.

Diplomacy is one thing, as Teddy Roosevelt said: ``Walk softly, but carry a big stick.''

I would just suggest to you that if you go back to the year 2016-- actually 2017, when our 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump, came into office, please tell me why for the 4 years Mr. Trump was in office, the rest of the world stayed at bay? The bad actors of the world didn't attempt to do any of the things that they are doing today.

Certainly, last summer, in our demonstration of how we would leave a country high and dry, that we would take out our military first and leave our military equipment and citizens to face what was going on in Afghanistan was a warning to the rest of the world that you better be careful with the United States, because if you are not, they will pack up their bags in the middle of the night and leave. That is not who we are, that is not who we have ever been, and that is not who we can be in a free world.

If our friends and allies in the free world take a look at what our actions have been later--because actions always speak louder than words--but we continue to use words, thinking that somehow bad actors will cower and walk away from us, that is not the America that we know. That is not the America that 1.4 million of our men and women in uniform have died to protect and to send a message to the bad actors of the world, we will always be here, we will always be on guard, and we will never walk away from our responsibilities.

I don't know what has happened to America in a little bit over a year. People always say: I think it is better to be respected than feared. I think both have a great effect on everybody. I want both those to be in effect.

I will tell you this: When Donald Trump was our President, nobody but nobody messed with the U.S.A.

Mr. Speaker, we have so many things going on right now. We wonder: What is the future? What is the future not only for America but for America's friends and allies? We look at energy as one of the key issues that we are talking about today, and we know that in America we have endless supplies of energy. What is holding us back now are our own regulations.

I heard the administration say: We have thousands of permits; why don't you just go ahead and use them? Which really shows that they have absolutely no idea that having a permit isn't the same as extracting energy. Somehow, I guess, if you say it long enough and loud enough and to the right crowd, they will nod their heads and say: I know. You are right.

You know what? Get out into the field and see the people that actually do it. Talk to the people that know how to extract energy. Talk to the people that can go offshore. Talk to the people that go deep down into the Earth. Talk to all of those people and tell them: Don't worry. You have a permit. Just go ahead and use it. And by the way, if you don't use it, we will start taxing you on your nonuse. How upside down is this thinking?

Pro-Life Information

Mr. Speaker, the last thing I am going to address tonight is probably the most important issue of all, because everything we talk about right now, everything we have addressed already, is about life.

There was a tradition here that on Wednesdays people would wear red, and they would wear red to remind people of the girls that had been kidnapped by Boko Haram. We wanted those girls back, so we would wear red and would walk around here and say: We have got red on today because we want those girls back; Boko Haram has got to return those girls.

So I started wearing red on Wednesdays. Friends on the other side would say to me: So you are in concert with us; you believe the same things we do? I would say: I absolutely do. I absolutely do. They said: You want those girls back? I said: Yes, I do. But I don't want just the girls that Boko Haram took; I want the girls back that have been aborted. I want those girls back whose lives were ended. I want you to really face the truth of what is going on in America today.

The wordsmithing that takes place here in the people's House, on the floor, people talk about abortion as healthcare, taking the life of a little boy or a little girl is healthcare.

Every night, we see pictures of what Russia is doing to Ukraine. Yet, we have a deaf ear to the cries of the unborn, and we don't look at all to those who are being lost every day. Because if you don't see them, I guess they don't count.

Congress has long required that taxpayer dollars are not to be used for abortions, and President Biden has actively tried to circumvent this requirement. In April of 2021, under President Biden's leadership, the NIH announced it would no longer require fetal tissue research projects funded by the agency to go through an ethics advisory board.

So the question then becomes: Why do we have an ethics advisory board, if we are not going to go to them to find out what it is that we are talking about?

Then in September of 2021, we began hearing the horrific allegations of illegal abortions being performed at the University of Pittsburgh for harvesting fetal tissue.

I can tell you, me being on the floor tonight will resonate in Pittsburgh and, unfortunately, it won't be by those who are pro-life; it will be by those that think that somehow this is an attack on Pitt and not an attack on little unborn boys and girls.

For all of those who do not like what I am saying tonight, please take off your blinders and understand what is taking place.

We began hearing all of these horrible allegations of illegal abortions being performed at the University of Pittsburgh for harvesting fetal tissue. These abortions were performed as part of Pitt's participation in an NIH program for the university to operate as a fetal tissue repository for research happening around the country.

The types of abortions Pitt is accused of performing are horrific. Babies that survived the abortion would be born alive and then killed. This was to preserve--this is really hard to understand--this is to preserve the fetal cells longer, a process known as maximizing warm ischemia time.

When you say: Well, what is that? When you talk to the scientists, well, the idea is the warm tissue is actually more valuable for our studies. So a baby boy or girl that survives this abortion, that is the tissue that is the most valuable to us.

Now, I think if any of us came upon some kind of accident or saw somebody

who was in grave danger, we would want to save them. Somebody who has endured an unbelievable process and survived it, we would save them; we would not take advantage of that.

This program was supported by taxpayer funding through the NIH program. So congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Taxpayer, for all the things that you hate, you are helping to fund it.

This isn't the only abortion project that the National Institutes of Health is funding, though. The NIH expects to spend $88 million on human fetal tissue research in this year alone.

When these allegations began coming out--which I thought was a real good move by the university--they hired a law firm to conduct an independent review of Pitt's abortion process. Somebody is questioning the process you do, so you say: Here is what I will do. I want to participate with you, so I will provide the funding to an independent research group. That law firm was a Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm that employs Pitt grads. What a surprise.

The review determined that Pitt was totally in compliance with the law. They didn't say what Pitt was doing was right; they said they were in compliance with the law, even though that report completely failed to look into Planned Parenthood or UPMC, who were partners with this NIH program.

When all of this came out, we sent a letter, along with Representative Morgan Griffith and over 50 of our colleagues, asking the NIH for answers on how it funds and oversees these abortions programs. It took them months to respond to me, which is not unusual for any letter you send to any agency here in Washington, D.C.

When they finally did reply to us, they simply pointed out to me and to the rest of us: Please, look at Pitt's independent review.

Now, this level of accountability to Congress is completely unacceptable, and it shouldn't take months for a government agency to respond to letters from any of us here in the House of Representatives. We are here representing the people who voted us in office. And when they do respond, they should respond with a substantive answer. I don't need to be horsed around and told something and told: Well, you just don't understand.

Which is absolutely correct. I don't understand. In the United States of America, why are we doing things and then covering them up and saying, we did an independent review. We paid for it, and these guys actually came up with an answer that we were looking for. So they followed the money.

A few weeks ago, Congress finally passed a budget, the first since President Biden has been in office. It was far from perfect, but it included strong protections for the unborn, protections which have been in place since the 1970s.

Less than 2 weeks later, President Biden released his 2023 budget proposal, which included a full wish list of Democrat anti-life priorities.

Here are some examples from his recent budget: Number 1, it eliminates the Hyde amendment, which prohibits federal funding for abortions. It became law in 1976. The Hyde amendment has saved over 2.4 million lives.

It also wants to eliminate the Dornan amendment. The Dornan amendment prevents taxpayer dollars from being used to pay for abortion in the District of Columbia. Without this protection, D.C. taxpayer dollars could pay for an estimated 1,400 to 1,500 abortions every year. Every year.

It increased Title X family planning funding by $113 million. Title X is a prime funding source for Planned Parenthood, providing it with $56 million taxpayer dollars annually. Now, on January 21, 2022, the Biden administration awarded $6.6 million in Title X funds from the American Rescue Plan to abortion providers. $6.6 million in American taxpayer money to provide funds for abortion providers.

Now, I am Catholic, and oftentimes I have gone to my priest and I have said, ``Father, is there some reason you cannot go into the pulpit and talk about the horrendous things that are going on in our country today?'' You know what the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said? ``The USCCB remains gravely concerned about the continued efforts to expand taxpayer funding of abortion, which would occur if the Hyde amendment or any other lifesaving appropriations riders were to be removed from the annual appropriations bill.''

``We take this stand because abortion is not healthcare. It is the antithesis of healthcare.''

Now, I know I am out of time, but me being out of time here on the floor does not take this country from being out of time to address the most egregious actions that are taking place.

Now, I just tell you, I am going to use up some time, and you can keep hammering me, but you know what? In the time we have been talking, so far, as of April 5----

Madam Speaker, I think we should mark this down, March 29, 2022, the day that the people who were elected and came to represent our folks back home actually got together and did something on the House floor that was good for everybody in America.

We are not firing bullets back and forth at each other. We are saying: Do you know what? Isn't it great, when we work together, what we can get done.

Mr. Kind and I were walking over together, and he said: Mike, I am really happy this happened because there is a lot in there that we both worked on, and it looks like it is going to put a little more gold in our retirees' pockets when they hit their golden years.

But this is one thing the press will never cover. They will never say: My God, these Republicans and Democrats got together for American workers to make sure that they go into retirement and lay their heads on pillows at night and sleep because they know they have enough to get through the rest of their lives.

What a moment. What a moment.

I have to tell you, I am so proud to be a part of this. I thank Mr. Brady and Mr. Neal.

For both sides of the aisle, why don't we use this as an example as we move forward as to what the heck we are supposed to do for the people who sent us here to represent them?

Madam Speaker, I thank Kara Getz, from Chairman Neal's staff, and Payson Peabody, from Ranking Member Brady's staff, for working together on this. They get so little credit for all the midnight oil they burn to make sure that we can get legislation done. I thank them so much, not just for me but for all the retirees and future retirees we have in this country.