Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the outstanding contributions of my dear friend, Anthony L. Romano.

Commissioner Romano has dedicated his life to public service, law enforcement, education, and the communities of Hudson County and especially his hometown of Hoboken. His longstanding commitment to serving others has made a lasting impact of Hudson County and the residents he proudly represents.

Commissioner Romano served the City of Hoboken for 32 years as a member of the Police Department, rising to the rank of Captain. Since his election to the Hudson County Board of Commissioners in 2009, he has continued his commitment to public service by championing investments in local infrastructure, public spaces, and community resources. His efforts have helped improve county roads and parks and secure funding for the Hoboken Historical Museum, Hoboken Public Library, and Hoboken Cove Walkway.

Commissioner Romano has also worked to strengthen county government and expand opportunities for Hudson County residents. He sponsored an ethics reform package requiring annual ethics training for county employees, supported the creation of the County's minority and women enterprise office, and helped advance rehabilitation and reentry initiatives. Beyond his official duties, his long-standing involvement with civic and community organizations reflects his deep commitment to the people he represents.

I extend my deepest gratitude to Commissioner Romano for his exemplary public service and his unwavering dedication to Hudson County. His contributions have left and indelible mark on Hoboken, Jersey City, and the residents he proudly serves.

Mr. Speaker, last year, I stood outside Delaney Hall in Newark, New Jersey, and made the dire observation that no one is safe in Trump's America. Since then, three people that we know of have died after medical emergencies at Delaney Hall, including Edwin Lopez- Cornejo, who leaves behind his 12-year-old U.S. citizen daughter.

In private detention centers across the country, ICE and their private partners, like The GEO Group, are continuing down this dangerous path without any regard to the human cost of their actions.

In my over 20 visits to Delaney Hall, I have seen a man with a debilitating condition refused a wheelchair for

weeks, and when finally given one, was forced to stay in medical isolation for months; a woman who suffered a miscarriage and was told she had a psychological pregnancy; requests for medication and post-op care that go unanswered. These are not mistakes or oversights. This is a deliberate choice by this administration to inflict pain and suffering because their cruelty knows no bounds.

This is happening across the country. Thirty-one people died in ICE detention last year, the most in more than 20 years. This year, 24 more people have lost their lives.

However, ICE isn't just killing people in detention. They are shooting American citizens like Renee Good and Alex Pretti in broad daylight. This should outrage every American.

Yet here, in this Chamber, what has been the response of our Republican colleagues? It has been silence.

While they carry their Bibles to church on Sunday, they carry the word of Donald Trump and Stephen Miller every other day of the week, and they are responsible for what is happening across our country.

Instead of finding their voice to speak out against this administration, they are trying to suppress and silence the voices of Americans, whether by limiting their ability to vote by mail or limiting the number of polling locations in Texas, because Republicans know they have failed. They have failed their constituents. They have failed their country, and they know Americans are angry, as I am angry.

We will end this national nightmare with or without them. We will protect our communities. We will hold accountable everyone who is responsible for the lawlessness, pain, and terror that this administration has inflicted on all of our communities, and we will remember everyone here who stayed silent in this moment.

Mr. Speaker, we are here today to honor Congressman Frank J. Guarini, who passed away on Saturday, June 20, at the age of 101.

As a distinguished World War II veteran, Congressman Guarini's service to our country began at a young age.

He continued that service in the New Jersey State Senate, passing groundbreaking environmental protection laws and bringing the Giants to New Jersey.

In Congress, he represented his beloved Jersey City where he was born and raised. In over 14 years in the House, he set a standard that we all aspire to today.

Congressman Guarini built a remarkable record on trade, international affairs, education, housing, and environmental protection, all while never losing sight of his community and the people he fought for every day of his distinguished career.

After retiring from the House and serving as U.S. Representative to the General Assembly of the United Nations, Congressman Guarini dedicated himself to the revitalization of Jersey City and philanthropy, both missions in which he achieved great success and left a lasting impact.

He leaves behind a legacy that will not be forgotten by the countless people whose lives he touched in his eight decades of service.

Mr. Speaker, now it is my honor to invite the House for a moment of silence for our colleague and friend Congressman Frank Guarini.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with more heartbreaking stories about the victims of the Trump administration's violent and immoral immigration actions.

In my visits to Delaney Hall, I have met with fathers, mothers, and even a pastor who pose no threat to the safety of our communities.

Mr. Speaker, I carry with me the story of a constituent who has protected status in this country, but for over a year has been detained in Texas and persistently threatened with efforts to remove her to a third country. Each time ICE failed to do so, until last week, when I found out that, in the dead of night, ICE took her from this country, from her family, and where she is supposed to be protected, to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where if we do not get her back, she will die.

For 15 months, we have seen the Trump administration tear apart our communities, kill American citizens in broad daylight, and inflict unimaginable pain on so many, including our children.

In each unspeakable moment, Republicans have been silent, and they have been complicit in the brutalization of our neighbors. Their silence will never be forgotten. Whatever they choose to do or not to do, they need to know this: House Democrats and the American people will never bend. We will never relent, and we will fight on until we finally end this national nightmare.

Mr. Speaker, I have said for months that no one is safe in Trump's America. From New Jersey to Minnesota, mothers, fathers, children--no one is safe. We have seen people like Greg Bovino and his masked paramilitaries come into our communities and cause an immense amount of harm. We have seen 5-year-olds come home from school only to be detained and then sent to Dilley, Texas, then be returned and see the administration try to end their asylum claim. This is what people are experiencing across the country. We need everyone to speak out against it, not just in Minnesota, not just in New Jersey, and not just Democrats but Republicans as well. This is not who we are as a country, and we cannot be silent in this moment.

Mr. Speaker, in the span of 12 weeks, our country was shaken by the tragic killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who lost their lives because of the violent and reckless choices that the Trump administration has made.

When I went to Minneapolis shortly after Renee Good's killing, I heard firsthand how the Trump administration's dangerous escalation of immigration enforcement is a threat not just to Minnesota but to every community and every American.

Since Trump took office, at least six people have died during enforcement activities by Federal agents. People are not just dying in our streets. They are also dying in immigration detention centers run by ICE and private companies that have been empowered to profit off of detaining mothers, fathers, and children who pose no threat to our communities.

Just last year alone, 32 people died in ICE detention, including Jean Wilson Brutus, who had been detained at Delaney Hall in Newark, New Jersey.

While this administration claims they have our communities' best interests in mind, they have already proved through their actions from New Jersey to Minnesota and across the country that safety is not their priority. No one is safe in Trump's America, not mothers, not fathers, not our elders, and not even our children.

That is why we must continue to stand up to fight for our communities and why we must drive Trump's paramilitary out of our communities, why we must end ICE, why we must end private detentions, why we must remove Secretary Noem, why we must remove Stephen Miller, and why we must continue to fight for the soul of our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, last week, a mother of three, a U.S. citizen, was killed in broad daylight. You would think in that moment Republicans would find their voice to speak out against the cruelty of this administration. Her children were robbed of memories that make a life, and they won't have their mother there for them.

This week, ICE, DHS took this 5-year-old boy, Liam Ramos, from his family and from his community. This is what Liam's teacher says about him:

``He is very friendly. He comes into class every day, and he just brightens the room. His friends haven't asked about him yet, but I know that they'll catch on.''

Mr. Speaker, what they will catch onto, those 5-year-olds, the age of my daughter, is that this government, this administration, House Republicans have failed the American people. They failed our communities. They failed to keep us safe in the name of something that the Trump administration has lied to the American people about.

This is the face of the people you are taking from our communities, from their families. It is unacceptable. It is unacceptable that you have not found your voice to speak out against it.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today because I could not leave Washington this week without calling out House Republicans for their hypocrisy.

They have been silent while DHS agents shoot Americans in broad daylight and then smear them as domestic terrorists. At the same time, they try to vanish the memory of January 6 from our collective memory, refusing to put up a plaque to honor law enforcement officers who defended them from actual domestic terrorists in this very building.

They won't hold this administration accountable because it would make them feel as unsafe as many Americans feel right now. They all saw what happened when Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of Trump's staunchest supporters, opposed the President and in doing so saw her and her family's safety threatened. This is the culture of fear this President has created and which House Republicans have been complicit in.

The American people deserve better, and I will keep coming down here until House Republicans finally speak up for the American people and hold this administration accountable.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday our Nation witnessed the killing of a fellow American in broad daylight, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her name was Renee Nicole Good. She was a concerned citizen and a mother. The loss of her life was entirely preventable.

This tragic loss of life comes the same week that we remember what occurred here 5 years ago on January 6. On that day, violent insurrectionists attacked police officers, many of whom sustained serious injuries and five of whom have passed away since the attack, including Brian Sicknick, a New Jersey native and a proud Capitol Police officer.

Instead of remembering and healing from the events of that day, President Trump pardoned close to 1,600 seditious and violent insurrectionists who were convicted of criminal charges. The President and House Republicans have tried to vanish the events of that day from our collective memory, but we will not let them.

Last year, alongside my colleagues Congresswomen Watson Coleman and McIver, I witnessed firsthand outside Delaney Hall how far this administration will go to silence dissent and opposition when more than 20 armed ICE and HSI officers physically prevented us from doing our job.

What I said then and what I would say today is that all of this should be completely unacceptable to all Americans and should shake every American to their core. I have said time and time again that no one is safe in Trump's America. Mothers, Capitol Police officers, our neighbors, Members of Congress, no one, not a single person should feel safe with him as our President.

This administration's extreme agenda does not reflect the best of who we are as a country but, instead, seeks to turn us against each other. We cannot allow that to happen.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend and colleague, Ranking Member Pallone, for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, House Republicans ended 2025 by failing to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits causing healthcare costs to skyrocket for millions of Americans.

Since President Trump took office, electricity prices have gone up by 13 percent nationwide and 20 percent in New Jersey, leaving over 80 million Americans struggling to pay their utility bills. Instead of addressing the affordability crisis that they have ignored, that President Trump has called a hoax, the Republicans' priority on day one is showerheads.

It is obscene that with all the work we need to do to uplift American families, to give them a fair shot at the American Dream, the Republican majority would choose instead to focus on showerheads. Why? Because it is important to one person and one person only, Donald Trump.

Not once, at any of the townhalls I have had, has anyone said that their showerhead pressure is their top concern. Housing, yes. Healthcare, yes. Childcare, yes. Not once did they say showerheads was their primary concern.

If my colleagues were serious about governing, we would be voting on protecting healthcare, lowering costs, and addressing the real issues that working families are facing. We would not be here today talking about showerheads.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my Republican colleagues to get serious and focus on the priorities our constituents sent us here to address. For all these reasons and so many more, I strongly oppose this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the new Republican healthcare legislation.

Instead of extending Affordable Care Act tax credits and keeping premiums from skyrocketing, House Republicans are pushing a plan that would force more than 20 million Americans to pay, on average, twice as much for the same coverage they have today. As a result, 4 million Americans will lose their insurance while others are going to be forced to pay far more for far worse coverage.

Americans are already facing an affordability crisis. The House Republican solution is to cut a trillion dollars from healthcare, pass the largest cut to SNAP in history, and do nothing while Trump's tariffs raise costs across the board.

When families are struggling every day to keep their heads above water, House Republicans are cutting all lifelines and throwing them a bag of bricks.

This is not how government is meant to work. We need to uplift the American people and give them a fair shot at a good life that rewards hard work.

That is what House Democrats will always fight for, a government that works for you, the American people. That is why we are forcing a vote to extend the ACA subsidies. We should not leave D.C. until we have that vote.

Regardless of what the Republicans do, the American people need to know that House Democrats, when we are back in the majority, will fight for a healthcare system that works for all Americans.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor my friend and colleague, the late Congressman Donald Payne, Jr., as we commemorate what would have been his 67th birthday.

Donald and I were good friends and neighbors both representing the cities of Newark and Jersey City together. A proud son of Newark, Congressman Payne dedicated his life to fighting for his neighbors, ensuring no one was left behind.

In his decades of public service, Congressman Payne was among the most progressive voices in our country fighting for every single American.

What I admired most about my colleague was the courage and bravery he displayed in making his battle with diabetes public so he could advocate for better treatments and solutions for the horrible disease that ultimately took him from us.

Until the very end, Congressman Payne continued to fight for his constituents, introducing legislation to protect people with disabilities within our healthcare system.

I miss my friend. I miss his style. I miss his flair, and I miss his laugh, but

I know that his spirit lives on and that we will continue the work he committed himself to.

Happy birthday, Donald.

We miss you, and we will always be better for the work and dedication that guided your years of service.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in opposition to H.R. 1949.

Mr. Speaker, this bill would force the Department of Energy to rubberstamp every LNG export and strip the Department of its ability to review whether those exports are actually in the public interest.

At a time when families across the country are already seeing rising costs, Republicans are doing the opposite of what is needed. Instead of working to lower energy bills, they are prioritizing legislation that props up the fossil fuel industry and blocks affordable, clean energy that is ready to be connected to the grid.

We already know that increased LNG exports means higher energy prices for our communities at a time when families are already facing an affordability crisis. Due to skyrocketing demand, including from data centers, families in New Jersey saw a 20 percent spike in electricity bills this summer.

Further, Republicans claim that we need more fossil fuels to compete with China. If that is their concern, why advance a bill that makes it easier for China to purchase even more of our domestic energy? Why are we driving up our own energy bills to help an adversary? It makes absolutely no sense.

If we are serious about competing with China, we should take an all- of-the-above strategy to energy production and fast-track clean energy onto the grid.

Further, my colleagues across the aisle should tell the Trump administration to get Revolution Wind, which is off the coast of Rhode Island, back on track. That is how we produce more energy in this country. Doing so would bring down prices for American families in the process.

Mr. Speaker, I am strongly opposed to this bill, and I urge my colleagues to join me. Let's put the interests of our communities and of our country first.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and welcome the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, His All-Holiness Bartholomew, to Washington, DC. The spiritual leader of the Orthodox Christian Church, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew comes to the United States to accept the Templeton Prize, which recognizes an individual who has ``made an exceptional contribution to affirming life's spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical works.''

Born in current day Gokceada, Turkey, His All-Holiness received his undergraduate degree at the Theological School of Halki and completed graduate studies at three universities in Italy, Switzerland, and Germany. He was elected in October 1991 as the 270th Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome, a Church of 300 million individuals worldwide, including many of my constituents in New Jersey's 8th Congressional District. He has devoted his life to advocating for peace-building measures, organizing interfaith summits, and promoting religious freedom and human rights.

It is a privilege to welcome such a leading figure to the Nation's Capital and recognize his significant contributions to peace, interreligious dialogue, and cultural understanding.

I urge my colleagues to join me in celebrating this historic visit.

Mr. Speaker, 24 years ago today, our Nation was changed forever. I remember that day as a high school student. Standing along the Hudson River, a cloud of smoke and destruction hung over the New York skyline. There was palpable fear and terror in the air. I witnessed a stream of people covered in ashes, trying to get home. It is impossible to forget.

What I remember most is how we came together as a country after that fateful day and how we bridged our divide and joined together as one Nation in grief and mourning but also in resolve and patriotism.

Today, 24 years later, we are once again reminded of how easily those divisions can take hold of us and how they can divide us if we allow them to. We owe it to ourselves and, even more so, to the bravest Americans who answered the call that day and laid down their lives to recommit ourselves to civility and unity.

We must never forget 9/11. We must never forget the victims, the survivors, and their families. I believe with every fiber of my being that we can heal our Nation and mend our wounds. We can truly be the United States of America and ``out of many, one.''

Mr. Speaker, that is the best way to honor their memory today and every day hereafter.