Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor my constituent, Cora Greenberg of Pleasantville, New York. After 23 years of service, she will retire from her position as Executive Director of Westchester Children's Association (WCA) at the end of June.

Ms. Greenberg joined the 104-year-old organization in 1994. During her tenure, WCA expanded from a staff of two and an annual budget of $120,000 to a staff of eight and a yearly budget of nearly $1 million. WCA has increased Westchester County funding for youth programs and improved the selection process for funded programs through its Campaign for Kids. Additionally, WCA's data publications and analyses have become go-to resources for many advocates and policymakers.

Prior to joining WCA in 1994, Ms. Greenberg was the Associate Executive Director of Project Reach Youth, a multi-service youth and family agency in Brooklyn, New York, where she was highly influential in developing model programs in youth development, family literacy, and after-school education. Before joining Project Reach Youth, she served as Executive Director of Interfaith Neighbors, a-youth program founded and supported by more than 20 churches and synagogues on Manhattan's Upper East Side, and as a Program Coordinator at United Neighborhood Houses, a membership organization of 39 settlement houses and community centers in New York City.

Throughout Ms. Greenburg's time at WCA, she improved the lives of children in Westchester County by shaping policies and programs to meet their needs. She made thoughtful community engagement a priority for WCA, ensuring the organization continues to thrive and is well positioned to help many more children in the years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my fellow Members of Congress to join me in expressing thanks to Ms. Greenberg for her 23 years of outstanding service, dedication, and passion to the Westchester Children's Association and to the children and families of Westchester County and beyond.

Mr. Chairman, at the outset, I, too, want to thank Chairwoman Granger, Mr. Frelinghuysen, and Mr. Visclosky for the coordinated, collegial approach in producing this very outstanding bill. Of course, the entire staff on both sides of the aisle, I thank them for their important work. We couldn't do it without them, for sure.

The bill does reflect the collegial and bipartisan tradition of the Defense Subcommittee, providing ample funding for the needs of our armed services and intelligence community.

There are a number of provisions I would like to highlight:

Servicemembers receive a 2.6 percent pay raise, although I am concerned their civilian counterparts who work side-by-side with uniformed personnel will not see any increase;

$752 million is dedicated to congressionally directed medical research programs that are so critical and lead to breakthroughs on cancer, PTSD, Parkinson's, and more;

$8.4 is directed to bolster cybersecurity initiatives, $100 million above the enacted level; and,

$500 million, the full amount in the MOU, is invested in the Israeli Missile Defense Cooperative program.

The committee has taken its oversight responsibilities seriously to encourage greater efficiency, improve transparency, strengthen communication, and ensure the Department of Defense adheres to congressional direction.

Unlike other spending measures considered this year, this bill is the product of an inclusive process that invests in bipartisan priorities and is free of poison pill riders. It was written within the funding levels agreed upon in the most recent budget agreement, skipping OCO- to-base gimmicks previously employed to skirt the capped funding levels.

Mr. Chairman, I urge its support.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Major Abigail Vincent for her exemplary dedication to duty and service as an Army Congressional Fellow and Congressional Budget Liaison for the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Financial Management and Comptroller). Major Vincent is transitioning from her current assignment to serve as Comptroller and Deputy Director of Administration for the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases.

Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where her parents still reside, Major Vincent was commissioned as a Medical Service Corps officer after her graduation from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Comparative Politics. She also holds a Master's degree in Legislative Affairs from the George Washington University.

Major Vincent has served in a broad range of assignments during her thirteen years as an Army officer. Her assignments include: platoon leader and company executive officer at Fort Lewis, WA; Medical Operations Officer in Seagoville, TX; and Legislative Liaison in the National Capital Region. She also has a combat deployment encompassing 17 months in theater where she served in the Commander's Initiatives Group and as aide-de-camp for the Multi-National Force--Iraq Commander, General Ray Odierno.

In 2014, I had the privilege of having Major Vincent as an Army Congressional Fellow in my office and continued to work with her during her subsequent assignment as a Congressional Budget Liaison for the U.S. Army. Major Vincent's professionalism, diligence, and commitment to the mission are unmatched, and her work both as a fellow and as a liaison very effectively represented the U.S. Army and the Department of Defense to the United States Congress.

Throughout her career, Major Vincent has positively impacted soldiers, peers, and superiors. Our country has benefited from her extraordinary leadership, judgment, and passion for the Army profession. I join my colleagues today in honoring her dedication to our Nation and invaluable service to the United States Congress as an Army Congressional Budget Liaison.

Mr. Speaker, it has been a genuine pleasure to work with Major Vincent. It is with great appreciation that I recognize and commend Abigail for her service to our country and wish her all the best as she continues her service in the United States Army.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor my constituent, Richard P. Swierat. After 35 years of service, Mr. Swierat will retire from his position as Executive Director of The Arc of Westchester, based in Hawthorne, New York, on Friday, June 15, 2018.

Mr. Swierat' s career began at a time when people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) experienced widespread mistreatment. Throughout his time at the Arc of Westchester. Mr. Swierat has tirelessly dedicated himself towards fighting injustice in order to shed light on the promise and potential of the I/DD community.

Under Mr. Swierat's leadership, The Arc of Westchester has been on the vanguard of numerous improvements for people with IIDD living in Westchester County. Preschoolers with IIDD, who once were confined to self-contained classrooms, now learn in inclusionary settings, and adults with IIDD can now seek paid community-based employment instead of sheltered workshops. Mr. Swierat has influenced members of the community, in both government and business, and has been critical to helping countless individuals with I/DD live, work, and prosper in the communities that they have always called home.

Mr. Swierat is a member of the Board of Directors of the Business Council of Westchester, sits on many state and national boards related to the field of developmental disabilities and is an adjunct professor at Western Connecticut State University's Ancell School of Business. He received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters at Mercy College's 2018 Commencement Ceremony in May for collaborating with the College to make technology available to support people with learning and cognitive delays.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my fellow Members of Congress to join me in expressing thanks to Mr. Swierat for his 35 years of outstanding service, commitment and energy to the Arc Movement and to people with disabilities everywhere.

Mr. Speaker, it is outrageous that we are beginning this appropriations season by debating President Trump's rescissions bill, which fails the American people, hurts children and families, and injects needless partisanship into Congress' important appropriations work.

First and foremost, this bill fails the American people by eliminating funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program. Just months after exploding annual deficits, to the tune of $1.5 trillion, and lavishing massive tax breaks to big corporations with their tax scam, Republicans are now proposing to make children and families pay with a $7 billion cut from CHIP.

Targeting CHIP for a rescission prevents Congress from reinvesting in other priorities like child and maternal health, early childhood education, biomedical research, and our community health centers.

Additionally, the nearly $15 billion in rescissions cut numerous efforts to create jobs, grow our economy, and strengthen our communities. It cuts funding for the Economic Development Administration and for community development financial institutions, both of which create jobs in rural areas and distressed communities.

Treasury was prepared to announce 114 awards from CDFI's Bank Enterprise Award Program. This isn't merely spring cleaning by sweeping old funding up under the rug that would never be spent; it is taking investments away from local communities. It slashes billions of dollars from Federal loan programs that foster innovation and create clean- energy jobs.

Eight projects are in the pipeline through the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program, two of which would create 2,400 manufacturing jobs and an $890 million investment in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. The Republican raw deal would rescind these funds and prevent economic growth.

I am also profoundly disappointed that Republicans are willing to bring forward legislation that undermines 2 years of bipartisan spending agreements. This bill includes cuts to funding that was appropriated under the fiscal year 2017 omnibus, which was negotiated just over a year ago. And it reneges on the bipartisan budget agreement from February by further restricting CHIP amounts that could be reinvested in future years. Upending bipartisan agreements poisons the well and makes future negotiations more difficult.

Finally, I must express my strong objection to the rushed process by which Republicans have considered this rescissions bill. The White House submitted its final version of the rescissions bill less than 48 hours ago. We have had no hearings, no markups, or even any debate at all on this bill in the Appropriations Committee, and we are considering it with no opportunity to debate the merits of each of these rescissions on their own.

Mr. Speaker, this is not regular order, and, frankly, it is no way to make such a consequential decision.

Mr. Speaker, instead of rubber-stamping President Trump's rescissions package, Congress should conduct rigorous oversight to determine why the Trump-Pence administration has not spent these funds, even as they misspend tax dollars on first-class flights, fountain pens, and luxury dining sets.

Spending cuts that hurt American families should be carefully considered, not rushed through to score political points or help the majority's whip count on other bills. I urge Members to vote ``no.''

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the three-bill package that Republicans are bringing to the floor today.

Instead of following regular order and debating and amending the Energy and Water, Legislative Branch, and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bills separately, Republican leadership is forcing us to consider them together.

This broken process has a simple aim. Republicans are using America's veterans as pawns to force through cuts to clean energy research and harmful policy provisions that weaken environmental standards.

We all recognize the tremendous debt of gratitude we owe to those who have sacrificed for us in our Armed Forces, as well as their family members who share in their service to our country. That is why it is so important that Congress ensure our veterans receive the honors, benefits, and assistance they have earned.

While I support many of the increases within the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill, Republicans have created a dilemma by transitioning the VA Choice program from mandatory to discretionary funding in the middle of fiscal year 2019.

I want to make it clear: This is a serious decision. It should have been adequately debated.

Even worse, Republicans have blocked consideration of my amendment to solve this problem. That will mean a further squeeze, and perhaps even cuts, to programs that benefit the middle class.

The Bipartisan Budget Act provided an $18 billion increase for both defense and nondefense discretionary spending between fiscal years 2018 and 2019.

Instead of using those resources to create jobs and grow our economy, Republicans have chosen to devote $4.8 billion, more than a quarter of that increase, to the Department of Homeland Security, presumably for President Trump's border wall and the deportation force.

Not only is such spending a betrayal of our American values, it is a waste of resources that crowds out investments that keep our families and communities safe, strong, and moving forward.

Frankly, it is just part of a pattern in which Republicans are underfunding bills that will come later in the appropriations process.

For example, Republicans have not provided a single penny in additional resources to the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations bill. What does that mean? This means that they threaten to starve our schools, hurt job training and workplace rights protection, jeopardize Pell grants, and limit access to affordable healthcare, among many other ill effects.

We can and must do better than spending levels that prioritize President Trump's border wall and attacks on immigrant communities over the urgent needs of American children, families, and seniors.

Now, with regard to the Energy and Water bill specifically, we are confronted with a partisan bill that contains cuts to many important priorities for the American people.

With gas prices approaching $3 a gallon, the bill cuts energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives. It cuts transformational science efforts, such as the successful and popular ARPA-E program.

And just as bad, it contains many harmful riders, including rolling back clean water protections, blocking the National Ocean Policy, further endangering salmon on the Columbia River, and weakening gun safety rules on public lands.

These provisions and the cuts to important priorities that drive innovation and safeguard our national security make it impossible for Democrats to support this bill.

We can and must do better. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no,'' oppose the Republican raw deal that cuts critical priorities, includes harmful poison-pill riders, and sets Congress on a path to future bills that will cause serious pain for American children, families, and seniors.

Before I reserve the balance of my time, I would like to thank our chair, with whom I have always worked cooperatively, and your staff and my staff and all those who spend many, many hours making sure we can work together. However, I do hope, at the end of the process, we can put together a more responsible bipartisan bill.

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

Mr. Chairman, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies.

Mr. Chairman, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from Ohio.

Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ryan), the ranking member of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee.

Mr. Chairman, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), the ranking member of the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the Democratic whip.

Mr. Chair, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland.

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

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

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

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

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time to close.

I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this bill, which guts critical

investments in clean energy, guts clean water protection.

The Republican raw deal prioritizes President Trump's border wall and deportation force over much-needed increases to services that help American families, from early childhood education, job training, to securing the sanctity of our elections.

I vote ``no,'' and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor my constituent, Louis C. Tharp of Upper Nyack, New York. Mr. Tharp recently finished a six-year term on the Army Education Advisory Committee, a committee governed by the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

During his tenure on the Army Education Advisory Committee, Mr. Tharp worked on a number of important issues including women in combat, sexual assault and harassment, a facilitated soldier teaching plan, soldier talent management, Soldier 2020, an assessment of drill sergeant responsibilities, and second-and third-order effects of transgender integration.

He was recommended for this Senior Executive Service position by former Pennsylvania Congressman Patrick Murphy and the Victory Institute's Presidential Appointments Initiative. During his tenure at West Point, Mr. Tharp served as the first out gay coach and authored ``Overachiever's Diary, How the Army Triathlon Team Became National Contenders.'' The proceeds from its sale benefited the team.

Mr. Tharp served honorably in the Indiana National Guard. In addition, he has contributed to several organizations, including Knights Out, the West Point LGBT alumni association, and the Rockland County Anti-Bias Commission, which he chaired. He currently serves as Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Global Healthy Living Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with chronic illness. Mr. Tharp and his husband, Jim Bumgardner, will celebrate 34 years together this fall.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my fellow Members of Congress to join me in expressing thanks to Mr. Tharp for his service.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider) for working with me on this very important amendment.

Indian Point Energy Center, in my district, is scheduled to cease operations in 2021. When the plant closes, the village of Buchanan will be left with a large amount of stranded nuclear waste on site.

This amendment would help Buchanan and the town of Cortlandt access vital resources for economic redevelopment. Until the Department of Energy takes title to nuclear waste and removes it from our communities, the Federal Government must do all it can to support these de facto interim storage sites.

Mr. Chair, I urge adoption of the amendment.

Mr. Speaker, our Nation still grieves the loss of a great New Yorker, Louise Slaughter.

I will never forget when Louise and I, still just junior Congresswomen at the time, charged up the steps of the U.S. Senate to demand that Anita Hill be allowed to testify against Clarence Thomas.

Louise never lost that fighting spirit, fearlessness, and commitment to justice, equality, and women's rights.

She broke barriers, becoming the first woman to chair the House Rules Committee, and set a strong example of public services and principled leadership as dean of the New York congressional delegation.

As a leading champion of women's empowerment, she proudly represented Seneca Falls, the site of the first women's rights convention. It was an honor to charge alongside Louise up the steps of the Senate that fall day years ago, and during the many battles we fought together for America's healthcare, women's rights, opportunity for working men and women, and so much more.

New York, the Congress, and our country have suffered an immeasurable loss. I do pray that Congresswoman Slaughter's family and the legions of staff who served her may find comfort knowing her great legacy and many accomplishments have improved the lives of so many Americans.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Consolidated Appropriations Act repudiates the abysmal Trump budget, investing robustly in critical priorities like childcare, transportation infrastructure, national security, election protection, medical research, opioid abuse prevention and treatment, veterans' health services, and much more. These investments are key to strong families and communities, job creation, and economic growth.

This bill rejects scores of divisive poison pill riders targeting women's health, clean air and water, worker rights, consumer financial protections, health insurance, and other critical priorities.

In addition, I am pleased the omnibus includes language clarifying that the CDC has the authority to conduct research on the causes of gun violence.

Within the State and Foreign Operations division, this omnibus invests in stronger and more stable communities around the world, alleviating poverty and disease and strengthening democratic political systems. These investments in diplomacy and development are critical to our national security.

I am pleased this final product rejects onerous policy riders like the global gag rule.

These responsible investments and policies signal to the world that, despite an erratic President, the United States remains a world leader.

To be clear, this omnibus is not a perfect product. I strongly object to the majority's fixation on walling off our southern border and building capacity to arrest and detain immigrants. While the bill rejects the administration demands for a border wall, a large deportation force, and more detention beds, the amount provided is nonetheless a waste of money and contrary to our national character.

Before I conclude, I would like to thank Chairman Frelinghuysen for his partnership and all the members of the committee for their contributions.

I would also like to thank the minority, majority, and personal office staffs who worked so very hard, particularly Shalanda Young and Chris Bigelow and Richard Meltzer.

I also want to thank the committee's minority outstanding communications director, Matt Dennis, who is departing the House next month. He has served this institution for nearly 15 years at the Appropriations Committee in my personal office and in former Congressman Rush Holt's office. We will really miss his dedicated service.

I want to make sure I thank the majority staff, Nancy Fox and her team, because there was real cooperation between the majority and the minority.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the ranking member of the Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Ohio.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), who is the ranking member of the Labor-HHS Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), who is the ranking member of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), who is a senior member of the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cuellar).

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the distinguished Democratic whip.

Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman from Maryland an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Democratic leader.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

(Ms. JACKSON LEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, this isn't the bill I would have written, but I am very proud that it provides $117 billion more than President Trump requested in nondefense investments to grow the economy, create jobs, and help American families.

Again, I would like to thank our distinguished chair, Chairman Frelinghuysen, and the entire committee for its tireless work forging this bipartisan package.

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

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

It is a basic constitutional responsibility of Congress to fund the Federal Government and Republican majorities in the House and the Senate are just turning the process into an embarrassing spectacle, running from one crisis directly into the next.

It has been clear for 9 months that a bipartisan budget agreement would be needed to enact appropriations law, yet it has taken five continuing resolutions, two lapses in funding, countless hours of effort to take even this first step toward full-year funding bills, more than 4 months into the fiscal year.

I am pleased with many aspects of the budget agreement. Increasing statutory spending caps would allow the Appropriations Committee to write responsible, bipartisan spending bills that will invest in this Nation's families, communities, and national security.

I am also pleased the legislation would provide funding for families and communities in Texas, Florida, California, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands to rebuild their lives following natural disasters.

Unfortunately, this legislation cannot be considered in a vacuum. The Speaker of the House's refusal to commit to considering bipartisan legislation to protect teenagers and young adults from deportation is unjustifiable and maddening.

DREAMers are sons, daughters, parents. They are students and teachers. They serve with distinction in our Armed Forces. They pay taxes and contribute to their communities.

President Trump and the Republican majority hold the lives and futures of these children and young adults in their hands, yet their only concern seems to be how much they can extract and exchange for doing what a decent human being should do simply because it is right.

I cannot vote in good conscience to provide Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the very funding that could be used to deport the DREAMers. I cannot vote to continue the appropriations process while an unthinkably tragic fate hangs over the head of 1.6 million young people.

I do hope that in the weeks ahead a bipartisan bill for DREAMers can pass the Senate and enough pressure can be brought to bear on House Republicans to act. History will condemn these Republican majorities if they fail to do what is right.

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

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New Jersey (Mrs. Watson Coleman).

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Aguilar), a member of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Democratic leader.

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

A fifth CR--a fifth CR--while one party controls all levers of government, shows the Republicans' inability to govern.

Even more upsetting is their refusal to put a bipartisan DREAMer bill on the House floor. While there are provisions in the Senate amendment that Democrats support, we implore our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to do what is right and to permit a vote on a bipartisan DREAMer bill.

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

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

Since President Trump's draconian FY 2018 budget was released last year, Democrats have warned Republicans that a bipartisan budget agreement was needed to adequately invest in American families and communities. Without a budget agreement, programs as diverse as Head Start, job training, and terrorism prevention grants are in danger of inadequate funding, at best.

Instead of engaging with Democrats to reach a budget agreement, the majority is seeking to advance a full year of funding for only the Department of Defense, busting budget caps, while punting every other Federal service and investment to an uncertain future.

Mr. Speaker, the most powerful country in the world now being completely run by a Republican government can't keep the lights on more than weeks at a time. How did we get here?

Democrats will not go along with any plan that neglects critical national security and domestic needs. If this bill were to become law, the majority would have no workable plan to make the investments that are necessary for priorities, including biomedical research, infrastructure projects, Pell Grants, homeland security, assistance for local communities, veterans health, opioid funding, job training, the FBI, and other Federal law enforcement and more.

This is not a serious bill. We know that it will be quickly rejected by the Senate. It is the furthest possible cry from regular order that the majority so frequently discusses yet rarely follows. It is nothing more than a political ploy that will place us on the brink of another shutdown.

It is well past time to increase budget caps and enact responsible spending bills. The majority displays a lack of urgency regarding reaching a budget agreement and enacting appropriations law, choosing instead to advance partisan measures that fail to lift unmanageable budget caps for both defense and nondefense.

Republicans must abandon these partisan short-term bills and work with Democrats to fund the entirety of government for the remainder of the fiscal year to serve the American people.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Democratic leader.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Visclosky), the ranking member of the Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Defense.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the ranking member of the Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the ranking member of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Connecticut an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), who is a senior member of the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from California an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), who is the ranking member of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), who is the ranking member of the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the ranking member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.

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

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

This is the latest example of Republicans being completely incapable of governing. We must finish our work.

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

Mr. Speaker, first, I would like to say a few words about the retirement of my chairman, Rodney Frelinghuysen. Chairman Frelinghuysen has carried out his responsibilities with fairness and earnestness, and it has been such a pleasure to serve as ranking member during his chairmanship.

I look forward, however, to working together for the remainder of this year on our shared goal: bipartisan and responsible full-year funding for all discretionary investments.

Today, we are considering the FY 2018 Defense Appropriations bill for the third time, a time-wasting consequence of an agreement between the Speaker and rightwing Republicans--the third time. Last week, Republican leadership kicked the can down the road and passed yet another continuing resolution delaying investments in our military, education, infrastructure, biomedical research, and so much more.

Yet again, the bill before us removes Congresswoman Barbara Lee's amendment to debate a new Authorization for Use of Military Force which received bipartisan support in the Appropriations Committee markup. This undemocratic maneuver, which the majority has repeated once again, is outrageous.

In addition to the many procedural inequities, the majority's effort to increase defense spending is a mirage because the bill would turn off sequestration for defense in FY18, allowing Republicans to violate the spirit of our budget laws and increase defense spending while ignoring other investments that grow our economy, create jobs, and further provide for our security.

This is hardly about fiscal responsibility. If it were, the majority would eliminate the seven slush funds in this bill that equals $28.6 billion for a department that would receive far more than it requested.

Four months into the fiscal year, the Federal Government is irresponsibly operating on the fourth continuing resolution. We do not have an agreement on top-line spending numbers, let alone an omnibus spending package ready when the current CR runs out next week on February 8. So, my friends,

this is not the time to pat ourselves on the back for a job well done. On the contrary, we should be settling down and working together to pass spending bills for FY18.

If the majority were serious about funding our military, then they would move forward toward a full-year, bipartisan omnibus that could pass both Chambers. Instead, they continue to show their inability to govern by leading us down a path that will require another CR that is detrimental to our men and women in uniform.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill.

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

Since President Trump's draconian budget was released, Democrats have warned Republicans that a bipartisan budget agreement was needed to adequately invest in American families and communities.

Without a budget agreement, programs as diverse as Head Start, job training, and terrorism prevention grants are in danger of inadequate funding at best, yet Republican leadership and the White House have no appropriations strategy other than endless continuing resolutions.

Mr. Speaker, the most powerful country in the world now being completely run by a Republican government can't keep the lights on longer than 4 weeks at a time. How did we get here? If this bill passes, is there any reason to believe we will not be back in the same place next month?

Stumbling from one crisis to another is an irresponsible way to govern. Attempting to avoid a shutdown every month denies Federal agencies budget certainty and wastes taxpayer dollars.

Several of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have lamented the damage that the CRs inflict on our military. I agree with them, yet time after time, they vote for the exact same strategy they bemoan.

I encourage my colleagues to take action; hasten agreements on immigration and spending caps that would lead to responsible funding bills that keep Americans safe.

It is also unconscionable that, instead of helping advance a solution to this impasse, the President personally reneged on his word and rejected a bipartisan compromise on immigration. Protection of American teens and young adults from impending deportation to a country they don't know is the key to unlocking a responsible, bipartisan spending agreement. How can we expect to ever fund the government responsibly when the President cannot be trusted to keep his word?

The majority has failed to address a number of high-priority items, like funding to combat the opioid epidemic, pension protections, and funding for community health centers.

The continuing resolution lacks an important anomaly requested by the administration to provide additional disaster loans for the Small Business Administration while the disaster supplemental is stalled in the Senate. Without this language, the Small Business Administration will run out of funds by the end of January and will be unable to continue approving loan applications from Puerto Rico.

Mr. Speaker, this is not how the appropriations process is supposed to work. It is time to protect young Americans, lift budget caps, and allow Chairman Frelinghuysen and all of our committee members to roll up our sleeves and get to work.

Instead of wasting dollars on time, on further CRs, we should, instead, immediately pass a budget agreement and help DREAMers, which would facilitate full-year funding bills the committee could begin writing today.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the Democratic whip.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the ranking member of the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee.

I yield the gentlewoman from Ohio an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the well-informed ranking member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), the ranking member of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the ranking member of the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from Connecticut.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), the ranking member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Jayapal).

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentlewoman from Washington.

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

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

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

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Democratic leader.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), who is the ranking member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 1 minute to close.

Mr. Speaker, Congress has a responsibility to invest in initiatives to defend the country and grow the economy. Instead of continuing down a rudderless path of CR after CR, we must pass a bipartisan budget agreement and protect DREAMers, which will enable the Appropriations Committee to responsibly write full-year funding bills.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, this legislation is a failure of both process and substance. When Congress received the paltry and insufficient disaster request from the administration, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees began a bipartisan and bicameral process to develop an emergency assistance package that would come closer to meeting the massive scale of need resulting from hurricanes and wildfires in the summer and fall 2017.

I sincerely regret that the majority leadership abandoned that process, choosing, instead, to disregard input from Democrats and even from Senate Republicans, and developed their own partisan supplemental. The results of that decision is a poor product that will not be enacted into law.

Despite some robust funding levels, this bill fails to fix a potentially calamitous Medicaid system situation for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Without help from Congress, these programs will exhaust available funding within months. This bill also fails to waive unworkable and unjustifiable cost share requirements for FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers' projects, which could put Federal funding out of reach.

These and other serious shortcomings must be fixed before an emergency supplemental is enacted into law. Even if this supplemental passes today, the House majority's decision to exclude both Democrats and Senate Republicans from this process means that it will not be enacted this year because it cannot pass the Senate.

Instead of the partisan product with no chance of advancement, we should be considering a responsible bipartisan emergency supplemental that both the House and the Senate could pass and enact into law.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Serrano), the ranking member of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

(Mr. SERRANO asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Crowley), the chair of the Democratic Caucus.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 additional minute to the gentleman from New York.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

I yield the gentlewoman from Texas an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Thompson).

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

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

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

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

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Ms. Plaskett).

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 1 minute to close.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to reiterate that the bill before us is insufficient to meet the needs of those living in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Months after hurricanes devastated the islands, hundreds, if not thousands, of Americans have died, and far too many people are living without basic necessities that all Americans should have.

I include in the Record a letter from Puerto Rico's Resident Commissioner, Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon, which requests Medicaid assistance and 100 percent Federal costs for FEMA and Army Corps projects which are not included in the bill.

Congress of the United States,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC, December 20, 2017.

Hon. Thad Cochran,

Chairman, Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington,

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