Floor Statements

Offered By: Ms. Plaskett

Amendment No. 43: Add to the end the following:

Madam Speaker, for decades, my island, my home, St. Croix, was the home of the largest refinery in the Western Hemisphere, an identity that largely shaped our economic makeup to the detriment, in some instances, of historic industries such as agriculture or at the detriment of our environment but provided thousands of jobs throughout the years to our residents. The recent failure of the refinery to restart successfully has been a disappointment to many, but in there lies a unique opportunity before us.

With the rapid changes taking place in our climate and the urgency that the Biden administration has placed on environmental reform and the much-needed transition to green energy and renewables, we have an opportunity to reimagine how the south shore of St. Croix can be redeveloped.

The green energy initiatives and the focus on historically disadvantaged communities contained in the Inflation Reduction Act, along with the incentives and funding included in the bipartisan infrastructure law, are not only timely but critical for us as a territory.

I ask my colleagues, I ask Virgin Islanders, I ask our Governor and our elected officials to all join in reimagining and getting to work on redefining what we look like.

Madam Speaker, today, I rise to highlight some of the historic results my colleagues and I have been able to deliver to the American people over the last 2 years. By putting aside political agendas and working for the betterment of our communities, we have made real change.

In the 117th Congress, House Democrats fought to pass landmark packages to address the disenfranchisement inherently embedded in our country.

We helped ensure more of our people can thrive by passing the American Rescue Plan, the bipartisan infrastructure law, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Still, there is more work to be done. My colleagues and I remain committed to putting money back in the pockets of American workers and families by addressing inflation, lowering healthcare costs, and bolstering domestic manufacturing to create new, good-paying jobs--not scaring people, supporting them.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law which was signed into law by President Joseph Biden on this historic day last year.

The bipartisan infrastructure law is undeniably the largest long-term investment in U.S. infrastructure in almost 100 years, in almost a century. As we all know, our great economy relies on an immense infrastructure of roads and bridges, freight rails and ports, electrical grids, access to high-speed internet, and on and on.

Yet, many of the current systems in place were built decades ago and needed to be enhanced to guarantee our Nation's optimal economic performance.

That is why, when passing the bipartisan infrastructure law, we knew, as President Biden said, ``We could grow the economy, enhance our competitiveness, create good jobs, and make our economy more sustainable, just, and resilient.''

Mr. Speaker, I believe we have done that. As I explained to many of my colleagues last year, the Infrastructure of my home in the U.S. Virgin Islands has suffered extremely from systematic lack of investment. Our infrastructure issues were further exacerbated by the 2017 Hurricanes Irma and Maria, which were both Category 5 hurricanes.

When you hear that 1 in 5 miles, or 173,000 total miles, of our highways and major roads, and 45,000 bridges across the United States are in poor condition, think about what that looks like on a hurricane- prone island where residents may rely on a single road for passage of crucial resources and emergency services vehicles.

As Americans, the residents of the Virgin Islands needed us, as Congress, to step up. By passing the bipartisan infrastructure plan, we answered the call for all Americans.

To date, the Virgin Islands has been allocated $18.4 million, of an expected $96 million, to rebuild and strengthen our roads and bridges. In addition, over 1,600 households in the U.S. Virgin Islands have already enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program, which aims to provide affordable, high-speed internet to every American. That is about 43 percent of the total households on the island of St. John alone who now have access to high-speed internet.

Turning to the island's power supply, we now have much-needed capital to weatherize our power lines, which will prevent outages and make the power grid more resilient. Put differently, we are now better equipped to save lives.

In addition to these historic investments, I would like to highlight the announcement of two key projects:

First, under our Watershed Project, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will invest $51.7 million to reduce flood risk and damage to the Savan Gut area in our capital, Charlotte Amalie. The area is within the 100- year old flood plain and has recurring flooding problems primarily in the central business district and local elementary school. Therefore, as I am sure you can tell, the completion of this project is vital to protecting the future of our children, schools, and local businesses.

Second, in our Airport Project, the Department of Transportation has awarded nearly $4 million to Cyril E. King Airport to support its modernization and improve safety.

There are so many projects that all Americans are guaranteed because of the work of these House Democrats, along with our President, who have put the people of America forward in ensuring that infrastructure will meet the needs of a future America.

So, today, as we celebrate the many successes of the infrastructure plan, creating good-paying jobs, union jobs, helping fight climate change, advancing environmental justice, boosting domestic manufacturing, strengthening critical links in our supply chains, and ultimately lowering the cost of living for working families, I would like to challenge and encourage all of us to continue to work together to address the challenges of the American people, this country, and our world. Together, we can make a difference.

Mr. Speaker, the right to vote is fundamental to our democracy. While the path to full voting rights for all American citizens has been and still is long and challenging, this week we honor the heroes who fought to secure this right by encouraging and supporting all eligible Americans to register to vote.

This call to action would be incomplete if I did not mention the nearly 4 million Americans living in U.S. territories and those in the District of Columbia who still do not have equal voting representation in this Congress and in our country.

As such, Americans living in the territories and the District of Columbia are accustomed to being last in line or given short shrift for hurricane relief, Medicaid, and infrastructure funding.

We must remain committed to building an America where every vote matters and where every citizen has the ability and the right to participate freely in the democratic process.

That is why I stand with House Democrats to continue to work on securing the vote for all Americans. Our Nation depends on it.

Better-Paying Jobs

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to affirm my commitment to expanding work opportunities to all corners of the country, including the often excluded territory of the Virgin Islands. That means forming better-paying jobs and economic opportunities so Americans can work and live with dignity and security.

The Democratic Caucus has remained committed to people over politics in this with safer communities, better-paying jobs, and opportunities for all Americans.

That is why they have supported and I support the three significant pieces of legislation that have been passed by House Democrats: the CHIPS and Science Act which provides billions of dollars in new funding to strengthen American research and development and rebuild our supply chain; the Inflation Reduction Act which has stimulated job growth through investments in clean, affordable, and secure American energy while simultaneously cutting families' energy bills and fighting the climate change; and, lastly, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, let us not forget, which aims to rebuild our roads, bridges, and transit systems while bringing broadband and clean drinking water to more communities.

Black Women's Equal Pay Day

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight the disparities that exist for Black women due to the double-pronged existence of institutional racism and misogyny in our country. Black women bear the unique burden of experiencing both gender and racial discrimination. We have seen this in health, wealth, education, and work among all socioeconomic, geographic, and age groups.

Black women earn 58 cents to the dollar of a White man--the same job, the same position--58 cents to the dollar. Their earning gap is even more severe for mothers, with Black mothers only earning 46 cents for every dollar a White, non-Hispanic father earned nationally.

It is imperative that we demand pay equity for Black women. So today, I stand with all of my sisters and demand and implore my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support Black Women's Equal Pay Day.

Mr. Speaker, first, I offer my prayers and the prayers of the people of the Virgin Islands for the people of Puerto Rico after the devastation of Hurricane Fiona. My colleague across the aisle, Congresswoman Gonzalez-Colon, knows that, like so many other issues, she has my support.

Mr. Speaker, like many Virgin Islanders, September is a month forever etched in my mind. Five years ago on September 6, Hurricane Irma relentlessly pummeled the territory, and Virgin Islanders watched in mute shock as a Category 5 storm shredded roofs, uprooted trees, and shattered lives.

Then, 2 weeks after Hurricane Irma, 5 years ago today, Hurricane Maria made landfall. For hours that stretched into the early morning, another Category 5 hurricane brought destruction across parts of the island that had not been shredded by Irma.

The compounded impact of two Category 5 hurricanes is unfathomable. Virgin Islanders, undeterred by the dramatic scale of devastation, rallied in the face of tragedy and proceeded to rebuild their lives and our community.

Virgin Islanders banded together to deliver food and medical supplies, organize cleanup initiatives, and volunteer to transport people and goods between the multiple islands and Puerto Rico.

The response of this body, the House of Representatives, from leadership chairs to rank-and-file Members, was extraordinary. Ultimately, the dialogues and relentless advocacy were crucial to securing extraordinary funding and a significant change to the Stafford Act for the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico to not only provide necessary funding to rebuild but to rebuild with resiliency, to rebuild not as things were but as things should have been.

Despite the tremendous bipartisan funding, however, recovery stalled during the Trump administration due to, frankly, a belief by that administration that the funding was too much for the people of the Virgin Islands and not the financial responsibility of the Federal Government. Money was slow-walked.

Additionally, with the changes in law made by this Congress to allow the Virgin Islands to rebuild to prevailing industry standards, HUD, and especially FEMA, have had difficulty at the regional and local levels in accepting and implementing the changes in standards.

In view of this and unnecessary government bureaucracy, I coauthored the Expediting Disaster Recovery Act, a bipartisan disaster relief bill, with my colleague Representative Garret Graves, which expedites the allocation of additional funds and assistance to cover unmet needs.

Our isolation from the mainland and relatively small size created difficulty in obtaining supplies and workers, and the decision to report in to Puerto Rico added another layer of bureaucracy, further hindering the speed of rebuilding.

I must be transparent by recognizing that, unfortunately, local government exacerbated the slow pace of the rebuild. The unprecedented funding was not met with sufficient macro planning. We did not use the first years after the storm and still have not sufficiently built capacity--training individuals while paying them to meet construction and project management demands, developing integrated fund and project management systems, aggressively recruiting experienced Virgin Islanders to return home to advance the rebuild, and educating the people to be prepared for spending the massive funding.

Fortunately, there is a window of opportunity to jump-start this rebuild while Democrats remain in the majority, our President prioritizes resiliency in underserved areas that are particularly vulnerable to climate change, and our local and Federal elected officials maintain transparency and cooperation to advance this once- in-a-generation opportunity to transform the Virgin Islands.

I am continually encouraged by the grit and heroism exhibited by my people, the people of the Virgin Islands, who face the grueling task of rebuilding their lives with sheer tenacity and determination.

Together, we have a shared responsibility to safeguard the future of these islands by ensuring that the Virgin Islands remain stronger and more resilient from the twin tragedies of back-to-back Category 5 storms. The opportunity that lies before us is too great and meaningful to let pass by.

Madam Speaker, 57 years ago this week, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Medicare and Medicaid Act. By increasing healthcare access for elderly and low-income Americans, this act was a giant leap forward in building a more perfect Union.

Today, nearly 64 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare, and over 83 million Americans receive assistance from Medicaid.

We know that these programs are highly effective. Extensive research shows that Medicaid coverage is associated with a range of positive health outcomes. Medicare and Medicaid save lives. Medicare and Medicaid also have considerable economic benefits. Medicaid significantly helps reduce poverty and has been tied to economic mobility across generations and higher educational attainment, income, and taxes paid.

Despite the benefits of Medicare and Medicaid, my Republican colleagues are trying to dismantle these programs.

In 2018, a House Republican budget proposed slashing $537 billion from Medicare over a decade. Yet, while House Republicans try to gut Medicare and Medicaid, House Democrats are working to expand these programs to more Americans.

I am fighting particularly hard to improve Medicare and Medicaid in my district of the Virgin Islands of the United States and the other U.S. territories, which have long suffered from healthcare inequities.

Before 2017, in the Virgin Islands, nearly 30 percent of residents didn't

have health insurance. This is a rate disproportionately higher than the national average of approximately 9 percent. As of 2021, 34,000 individuals in the Virgin Islands, over a third of our population, relied on Medicaid and CHIP.

However, the Virgin Islands has historically been denied the same Medicare and Medicaid benefits available to the States. Unlike the States, Federal Medicaid funding to the Virgin Islands is capped. Before the storms of 2017, the Federal Government covered just 55 percent of Medicaid costs to the Virgin Islands, which is substantially lower than the 83 percent that would have been covered if the Virgin Islands were treated as a State.

In addition, the Virgin Islands and U.S. territories are excluded from receiving low-income subsidies under the Medicare prescription drug benefit, and they are excluded from DSH, the Disproportionate Share Hospital program under both Medicaid and Medicare.

Through recent legislation, I worked to temporarily increase the Federal share of Medicaid funding to the Virgin Islands from 55 percent to 83 percent and increase Federal Medicaid funding to the Virgin Islands by hundreds of millions of dollars. This has allowed 20,000 of our most vulnerable Virgin Islanders to retain access to healthcare.

Unfortunately, these provisions are only temporary, and a permanent solution is needed to ensure the people of the Virgin Islands have access to affordable healthcare. That is why I introduced H.R. 3434 with Representatives from the other territories.

This bill would eliminate the unfair Medicaid funding limits for U.S. territories, increase Medicare reimbursements to hospitals in the U.S. territories, allow residents of the U.S. territories to be eligible for low-income subsidies under the Medicare prescription drug benefit, permit DSH payments to U.S. territories, and take other measures to improve access to health insurance.

Madam Speaker, I am calling on the Senate to address the Medicaid issue for the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, Northern Marianas, and American Samoa to help almost hundreds of thousands of Americans. I am calling on the Senate to address this in any healthcare reconciliation bill with what was passed for the territories here in the House.

When President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Medicare and Medicaid Act into law, he promised: ``No longer will older Americans be denied the healing miracle of modern medicine. . . . No longer will young families see their incomes, and their hopes, eaten away simply because they are carrying out their deep moral obligations to their parents and to their uncles and their aunts.''

Unfortunately, this promise has yet to be fulfilled to residents of the Virgin Islands and the U.S. territories. As we mark 57 years of this legislation, let us commit to fully realizing this hope by expanding access to Medicare and Medicaid to all Americans.

Madam Speaker, the United States Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization to uphold the Mississippi Gestational Age Act and overrule the Court's prior decision in Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, declaring that the constitutional right to abortion upheld for nearly half a century no longer exists, ripped away women's right to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions.

Nationwide, radical Republicans were prepared to immediately charge ahead with measures to take away the freedom of choice. In Congress, Republicans are plotting a nationwide ban to criminalize abortion, and State legislatures are advancing the extremist agenda to criminalize reproductive health decisions, including new laws to arrest doctors and punish women and those who provide aid. Far-right politicians are actively working to dismantle the legal protections afforded to women and invading their bodily autonomy rights.

For centuries, women have fought tenaciously for their fundamental human rights and we will not stop. On July 18, 1848, 174 years and 2 days ago, the first women's rights convention in the United States was held in Seneca Falls, New York. The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 was the first platform for women to discuss their civil, social, and religious rights and challenge their inferior status. Feminist leaders and women across the country courageously voiced their collective struggles and petitioned for change.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton, an ardent activist and leader, presented the ``Declaration of Sentiments,'' demanding the same rights and freedoms that the Declaration of Independence granted to men at that time. The Seneca Falls Convention was a cornerstone of the women's suffragette movement and paved the path for women's rights movements.

Today, women's freedoms are under attack, and the consequences will reverberate as radical Republicans continue to push their political agenda and curtail basic rights. My Democratic colleagues and I remain unwavering in our commitment to defend the legal rights of women and families to make independent decisions about their futures by safeguarding access to reproductive healthcare services.

This week, House Democrats will vote to pass H.R. 8373, the Right to Contraception Act, guaranteeing the right to obtain and use contraception as established in Griswold v. Connecticut.

The alarming, extremist act of judicial activism in Dobbs v. Jackson has created a dangerous blueprint for future attacks on our most cherished rights. As an attorney who is a strict constructionist myself, this cannot stand. In his concurring opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that in future cases the Court should consider substantive due process precedents which legalized the right for married couples to buy and use contraception without government restrictions, same-sex relationships, and marriage equality. Calling into question the constitutional right to use contraception is dangerous for American women and families, as well as men, but also has the potential to disproportionately impact women of historically marginalized communities who face health disparities at higher rates.

Access to contraception can affect all aspects of a woman's life, including educational attainment, employment opportunities, healthcare, and economic success. The Right to Contraception Act recognizes the social, political, and economic impacts on our country and takes steps to protect Americans' right to make their own decisions about their health and their families.

The Supreme Court's ruling in Dobbs further emphasizes the need to act now, to protect access to contraception, and women's right to make reproductive health decisions. Contraception is essential to the health and rights of individuals. Women deserve the right to make informed decisions about their health, family planning, and future. It is 2022. We should not still be fighting for rights that are essential to basic health and bodily autonomy. Pass this legislation.

I thank the gentleman for yielding time.

It is so good to be here with you, to have this discussion about Social Security, the importance of this safety net to so many Americans, individuals throughout this country, but especially those who need it most.

I'm going to give you some numbers. We have 17,036 retirees; 1,331 children; spouses, widows, disabled workers. Those are the people in my district, in the U.S. Virgin Islands, who receive Social Security benefits--almost 20 percent of our population.

On average, these individuals receive $1,230 per month in benefits. That doesn't seem like a lot to so many Americans.

Yet, for many recipients, they are dependent on those Social Security benefits to survive. Social Security payments put food on the table, keep roofs overhead, furnish medication.

Indeed, for about half of senior beneficiaries, Social Security provides the majority of their income.

Social Security is even more important, as you have stated, for marginalized communities, particularly women and Black Americans. Without Social Security, 43 percent of older women would be living in poverty.

In 2014, 45 percent of all Black senior beneficiaries relied on Social Security for all or nearly all of their income.

Even in light of these details, we all know the Social Security system today is inadequate. The American people know it, my constituents know it, and I suspect my colleagues across the aisle are very much aware of that.

But I am grateful for you, Congressman Larson, Members of the Democratic party, and, in particular, my colleagues on the Ways and Means Committee who are exerting leadership, who are deciding to step out and do something about it.

We are not waiting around for the perfect. We are going to do some good. Benefits are insufficient. The Social Security trust fund will start running dry in 2035. That may be around the time that I need it, so we better get working on this. Waiting periods are unnecessarily long. It is long past time that we act to repair Social Security.

So many things in this House we just take for granted that we are going to work on, we are going to fix, whether it is roads, infrastructure. My gosh. Those are the things that oftentimes it is easy for all of us to get behind, but how do we not get behind our elders? How do we not get behind those disabled workers, widows?

Many of my colleagues want to quote the Bible. If they are concerned with the widows, if they are concerned with those that are elders, they should be concerned with Social Security.

I am proud when I was approached by you, Mr. Larson, to act as a co- sponsor of this legislation, H.R. 5723, Social Security 2100, a sacred trust.

This legislation would increase benefits for all Social Security beneficiaries. It improves the cost-of-living adjustment, the COLA, to reflect inflation.

My colleagues across the aisle want to talk about inflation all the time, but when we try to give them measures to combat it, there is nothing they want to do. They vote ``no'' each and every time.

I can almost expect that when we get to committee, and we are going to mark this up as a means to deal with inflation for our elders, they are going to say ``no'' to it as well.

It enhances benefits for widows and widowers, repeals provisions that penalize public servants, and ensures that no one retires in poverty.

H.R. 5723 promotes fairness in our Social Security system. It provides a tax cut for middle-income beneficiaries by raising taxation thresholds, while also ensuring millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share by applying the Social Security payroll tax to income above $400,000.

Finally, this legislation makes practical improvements to Social Security services to reduce access barriers. It ends the 5-month waiting period to receive benefits, enhances access to legal assistance, and prevents unwarranted closures of SSA field offices.

By increasing benefits, promoting fairness, and improving access, Democrats are improving Social Security so it will not only help beneficiaries today, but will also help future beneficiaries by extending the trust fund's lifespan.

This legislation may not solve every problem in our Social Security system and may not include provisions that every Member desires, but it will make a tangible, positive impact on the lives of nearly 70 million Americans.

I know that on the other side we hear things such as an 11-point plan to rescue America, and among other things the plan calls for Federal legislation to sunset after 5 years so Congress would need to reapprove it. We see them discussing 20 percent across-the-board cuts to Social Security. We say ``no'' to that. We want to support our elders, support the system, give a helping hand, fight inflation.

As President Franklin Roosevelt stated in 1935 when he signed the Social Security Act into law, ``This law, too, represents a cornerstone in a structure which is being built, but is by no means complete. . . . It is, in short, a law that will take care of human needs and at the same time provide the United States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness.''

I urge the House to lay another cornerstone in this unfinished structure by passing H.R. 5723. Our moral character as a nation is determined not by how we treat corporations and billionaires and the powerful but, rather, how we treat the most vulnerable among us: Hardworking seniors who have earned a peaceful retirement; people with disabilities who need support; veterans who courageously defended their country; widows; and children who have lost a loved one.

They are not asking for a handout or a free ride. Rather, they have worked hard to support their families and their countries and have paid into the Social Security system. Now they are simply asking their government to maintain the promise of Social Security and extend a helping hand during hard times.

I thank my colleagues for the work that has been done to bring this to the floor. I also thank our tremendous staff, who have done so much of the yeoman's work in bringing information, making sure that we are doing the right thing with the numbers, that this is something that is sustainable and is going to support not just those people who are receiving the benefits, but there is a benefit to all Americans by us doing this in the long run.

Mr. Speaker, this June, the private sector added 372,000 jobs to the economy, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.

I would recognize the leadership of the Biden administration and my Democratic colleagues in Congress for taking swift action to strengthen the economy through robust job expansion.

Since President Biden took office, the economy has added over 9 million jobs, and the unemployment rate has decreased from 6.4 percent to 3.6 percent after losing 3 million jobs during the pandemic.

The price of oil is decreasing due to the leadership of President Biden. Despite high inflation rates, today, we are seeing the strongest economy for American workers in decades. People are receiving higher wages, increased benefits, and better jobs overall.

House Democrats will keep working to develop the labor market, underpin economic progress, and prioritize expanding accessible and inclusive employment opportunities for American people, because that is who we care about.

Madam Speaker, I rise to speak on my amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that directs the Department of Defense, in conjunction with the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security, to assess the standing U.S. military force posture in the Caribbean Basin and the value, feasibility, and cost of increasing U.S. military capacity in the region.

The Caribbean region has long been a place of geopolitical exertion of power by foreign forces. Presently, China has planted flags in numerous Caribbean nations through investment and infrastructure. The United States is vulnerable from a national security posture.

This amendment is bipartisan, with support from our colleague representing the island of Puerto Rico, Congresswoman Gonzalez-Colon. This amendment is warranted, given the importance of the U.S. national security apparatus to capably fight transnational crime and protect U.S. national and regional security in the region. Too often, the Caribbean is ignored, and this amendment ensures that our Third Border is not forgotten as it confronts increasing regional political instability, hostile foreign engagement, and transnational criminal activity.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1168) reaffirming the economic partnership between the United States and the Caribbean nations and recognizing the need to strengthen trade and investment between the United States and the Caribbean nations, our ``Third Border'', as amended.

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 materials on the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, let me begin by commending my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, Representatives Wenstrup, Sewell, and Blumenauer, and indeed the membership of the Ways and Means Committee collectively, for joining me in support of U.S. trade and economic relations with our Caribbean neighbors.

This resolution is the product of a year's worth of work, and today would not be possible without the bipartisan support of my colleagues from across the aisle, particularly Representative Wenstrup, and his leadership, and our shared commitment to a focus on U.S. trade engagement with the Caribbean.

This resolution commits to enhance the economic partnership between the United States and the Caribbean region through strengthened trade engagement, including by promoting economic growth and development across the region, engaging directly with diverse stakeholders from the Caribbean, and supporting critical trade policies and preference programs.

The Caribbean, along with Latin America, has experienced significant challenges in recent years. According to the International Monetary Fund, IMF, we have seen a larger GDP contraction from the region than any other place in the world. Simultaneously, per capita deaths from COVID have been greater from the Caribbean and Latin America than any other region in the world. Furthermore, many of the islands and countries in the Caribbean have also experienced severe natural disasters, such as the recent earthquake in Haiti and numerous other extreme weather events like hurricanes.

So this resolution simply expresses support for furthering U.S. trade ties and economic relations with the Caribbean region. Overall, the resolution expresses the importance of the existing economic partnerships between the United States and the Caribbean region and strengthening U.S. trade and investment ties with the region.

Presently, the U.S. does about $35 billion in trade with the region, and American businesses can have a greater opportunity to grow in the region with our help.

Deepening economic ties between the U.S. and the Caribbean region helps American partnerships across the Western Hemisphere, where we support budding democracies at our doorstep and create mutually beneficial economic stability with our neighbors. Reciprocal trade is one of the mechanisms we pursue to do that.

Our overall trade agenda was well served by agreements like the 2013 Trade and Investment Framework Agreement between the U.S. and the Caribbean Community, CARICOM, as well as important trade promotion programs like the U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act and the HOPE/HELP trade preference programs for Haiti.

The Ways and Means Committee will be taking a hard look at what is needed for the Caribbean. As this resolution provides, we will engage with diverse stakeholders, including CARICOM trade ministers, policymakers, as well as labor, business, and civil society representatives, to dialogue and develop a shared multilateral trade agenda.

The trade programs that we have for the Caribbean, especially the Caribbean Basin Initiative programs like CBTPA preference programs, along with HOPE/HELP for Haiti, have historically enjoyed bipartisan and bicameral support, in part because of the shared history and close ties that the United States has with the Caribbean region.

I am pleased that this resolution also indicates how important the HOPE/HELP trade promotion program is for our sister nation of Haiti. I am committed to strengthening and renewing this program in a timely fashion.

Like any good trading relationship, we must continue to work to improve labor conditions, political stability, and especially to expand economic development to all countries in the important region of the Caribbean.

President Bush recognized the importance of this region by naming it as our ``Third Border.''

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution. The month of June was Caribbean American Heritage Month. There are about 13 million Americans who have Caribbean ancestry here in this country. They represent 4 percent of the American population. This is an opportunity for us to reaffirm this community and demonstrate to our neighboring nations in the Caribbean that we are committed to working together to improve trade and economic conditions.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Nebraska for his words, and I indeed recognize with him the importance of American engagement in the region. As Americans, this is our border. We must be engaged in the region so that others do not usurp our authority, our position in the region, and so our American businesses can grow as well. Economic development in this area is in the best interest of the United States.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have just returned from the Ninth Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles, which gathered the heads of state and senior government officials from nearly every country in the Western Hemisphere, as well as hundreds of businesses, civil society, and youth leaders from across the region.

Members of a 20-person congressional delegation met with leaders from many of our neighboring countries, Chile, Jamaica, Canada, Haiti.

I had the opportunity to speak with the heads of state of many of our Caribbean neighbors. From these conversations, one thing was clear: Now more than ever, it is necessary for the United States to deepen its relationship with Latin America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

With threats of the COVID-19 pandemic, democratic erosion, and climate change, my constituents in the Virgin Islands know all too well the collective challenges facing the hemisphere.

I thank the Biden administration for its commitment to productive engagement with Latin and Central America and the Caribbean. In Los Angeles, the administration announced the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity, which calls for sustainable and inclusive trade; the U.S.-Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030; and the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration.

I strongly urge this administration to follow up on these commitments and promises with concrete actions that will deliver tangible results, particularly in the Caribbean because the Caribbean is facing an economic crisis. The pandemic has exacted a harsh toll on the region, with regional economic activity falling by 9.9 percent in 2020, significantly worse than the rest of the region.

Climate change poses a particularly dire threat to the lives, livelihood, and businesses in the Caribbean. For years, the harmful trend of financial de-risking by banks has economically strangled the Caribbean islands.

The Caribbean, which is our third border, is essential to U.S. national and economic security. From the early days of the American Revolution to the Cold War, the Caribbean has played a vital role in U.S. defense. It, alone, is the United States' sixth largest trade partner, with $35.3 billion of trade in 2018. And 13 million people in the U.S. share Caribbean ancestry.

Despite these common interests between the U.S. and the Caribbean, China is making significant inroads in this area. Indeed, total Chinese trade with Latin America and the Caribbean rose from $18 billion in 2002 to $449 billion in 2021, and China is now South America's largest trade partner.

Therefore, improving the U.S.-Caribbean relationship and strengthening the U.S.-Caribbean trade and economic partnership must be a priority for the administration and this Congress.

First, we must follow up on our commitments made at the summit with tangible results and concrete investments that correspond to the Caribbean's needs and for our national security.

Second, this Chamber must pass H. Res. 1047, which will reaffirm the economic partnership between the United

States and the Caribbean nations, recognizing the need to strengthen trade and investments.

Third, we must authorize a general capital increase for the Inter- American Development Bank to ensure that the premier lending institutions for South America and the Caribbean have the resources to support the region in this difficult time.

I have introduced H.R. 7726 to do so, and the Senate has already approved such a capital increase in the United States Innovation and Competition Act. It is essential that this capital increase be included in the final version of the House COMPETES Act.

Fourth, the administration must work to counter the misguided trend of de-risking from U.S. banks, which has unfairly cut Caribbean nations off from access to capital and credit and economically harmed the region.

Madam Speaker, the Caribbean is inextricably linked to the security, economic prosperity, and cultural heritage of the United States. It is time for us to recognize this importance and prioritize U.S.-Caribbean relationships.

Madam Speaker, in recognition of Caribbean American Heritage Month, I honor influential Haitian leader Henri Christophe.

Born on the island of Grenada to immigrant parents, Christophe played a significant role in the American Revolution, serving as a sergeant in the French unit in Savannah, Georgia in 1780.

Christophe was among the 545 Haitian free slaves known as the Fontages Legion, fighting for the freedom of men and women who desired to be freed from the shackles of oppression.

After the French forces were defeated and Haiti was declared an independent republic in 1803, Christophe was elected president of the northern State of Haiti in 1807. He was responsible for the construction of Citadelle Henry in Haiti, introduced a monetary system based on gourds, declared Catholicism as a state religion, and established schools and hospitals, including a basic school of medicine.

Let us honor the legacy of this great man who fought for the freedom of those who refused to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I have shared before that my father was for many decades a New York City police officer. He had to carry a firearm to protect himself and others, but was acutely aware of individuals on the street, often with guns illegally, who could harm him and those he was tasked to protect.

I do not oppose the right of American citizens to own guns, or intend to rob any constitutional rights. But, we all know that money, hatred, and power have used the Constitution to cover themselves from showing the real intent that they have, the love of greed, desire for power, ignorance, racism, hatred. That is what many are using that constitutional protection to cover themselves from.

Over 50 percent of gun violence is attributable to people who use handguns to commit suicide. The remainder of those deaths and injuries are largely homicide and murder, such as widespread street crime. Then there are mass killings, which have been on an uptick in recent years.

On May 24, in Texas, an 18-year old boy acted as a lone gunman in the second deadliest school shooting on record. Armed with a semiautomatic rifle and 375 rounds of ammunition, he entered Robb Elementary School, opened fire, and laid waste to 19 children and two teachers. The pervasiveness and regularity of such occurrences in the United States has reached epidemic levels.

In 2020, 45,222 Americans died of gun-related injuries, more than any other year on record. That is a 14 percent increase since 2019; a 25 percent increase since 2015; and a 43 percent increase since 2010. In this year alone, almost 19,000 people have already lost their lives; a number, evidenced by the events of the past couple of weeks, are only on the rise.

This weekend alone, over a dozen mass shootings took place: Buffalo, Texas, Philadelphia, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma, so many more. These mass killings are just the tip of the iceberg with respect to gun violence carnage in America.

Firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens in this Nation. How many more children will be sacrificed before action is taken? How many more schools will we allow to become battlefields and burial grounds for the sake of the cloak that many are using the Constitution for.

The time for action is now. We know that our gun violence epidemic can be substantially curtailed with thoughtful, reasonable commonsense gun legislation. This includes raising the age, as we have done for so many things, for automatic purchases to 21, and developing and implementing more comprehensive background checks to prevent situations like the Buffalo shooting and the Uvalde massacre.

We need to strengthen gun laws for gun trafficking, which is devastating our country. Areas with strong gun laws cannot curtail the influx of illegal guns trafficked in from States with few restrictions. Places like New York City and Chicago cannot curtail the illegal weapons coming from other places.

With higher unemployment rates, places like my home, the Virgin Islands, has the second highest rate of guns smuggled across its borders and a homicide rate nine times higher than the 50 States.

As well as better establishing and regulating gun storage to prevent minors from acquiring deadly weapons, it is necessary for Members on both sides of this debate to come together to protect the lives of our citizens.

Throw off the cloak that you are using, calling our Constitution to hover and hide what you are really protecting: money, power, hatred.