Teresa Leger Fernandez

Mr. Speaker, I rise to provide a history lesson. In 1598, New Mexico got its name. In 2026, Donald Trump's Presidency is the most unpopular of any President. His Iran war has pushed diesel prices to record levels, and his tariffs have cost Americans thousands.

How does he address the affordability crisis he created?

It is by slapping a New America label on the State of New Mexico. Let me give Mr. Trump a history lesson. New Mexicans are proud of our name and proudly patriotic. New Mexican soldiers fought in the Revolutionary War. We defeated the Confederacy at Glorieta Pass and stopped slavery's westward march. We fought for civil rights.

A New Mexican won the Supreme Court case declaring that Native Americans had the right to vote in every election everywhere.

While Trump makes billions off his Presidency and tries to gut Head Start, New Mexicans have universal childcare, free college, and no child will go hungry in our classrooms.

We have multicultural bilingual education that celebrates our diversity in a State that is 49 percent Latino, 11 percent Native American, and has some of the best ranchers and dairy farmers anywhere.

Hardworking New Mexicans are the opposite of the gold-collared, corrupt politicians who cater to Trump no matter how crazy he acts.

Mr. Trump, New Mexico has been New Mexico since before you got to these shores, and we will always be New Mexico.

moment of silence honoring indian boarding school victims

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize September 30, 2026, as National Day of Remembrance to honor those who were forced to attend Indian boarding schools and to recognize Indian boarding school victims and survivors.

Across New Mexico, there were 52 Indian boarding schools where Native American children were forced to relinquish their own indigenous heritage and language.

I call upon my colleagues to support H.R. 7325, the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies in the United States Act, to formally investigate, document, and report on boarding schools, their policies, and the generational effects on Native American peoples.

We must support the healing of survivors, descendants, and Tribal communities. Many of the children never returned home to their families or their communities.

Mr. Speaker, I ask for a moment of silence for those children who did not survive, and may they never be forgotten.

honoring the life of randy lupe

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life of Randy Lupe, a wildland firefighter who helped protect New Mexico during the Frijoles fire.

A member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, Randy came with California Complex Incident Management Team 8 as the fire threatened rural communities. He spent 10 days supporting the response, carrying with him nearly 30 years of experience.

Randy brought laughter to long assignments and faith to difficult moments. He prayed with his crew, lifted their spirits, stood up for his fellow firefighters, and lived by a simple creed: Do what is right.

Tragically, Randy died as a result of a medical emergency while serving our communities. He is one of 61 firefighters we have lost this fire season.

Northern New Mexico mourns Randy and honors his sacrifice. He answered the call when we needed him most. We will remember him as a hero.

honoring catherine garduno

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor Catherine Garduno who recently passed away in Penasco, New Mexico, at the age of 96.

Catherine embodied resilience, faith, service, and love of country. The youngest of 12 children born to a sheepherder and a cook, she became her family's first college graduate, earning an education degree from the College of St. Joseph in Albuquerque.

A letter to Senator Pete Domenici brought her to our Nation's Capital, an experience she shared throughout her 35 years as an elementary schoolteacher. She even taught my district director in third grade.

Widowed, Catherine raised six children with strength and devotion. A devout Catholic, she received the Archbishop of Santa Fe's St. Francis Award for Volunteer of the Year. Her legacy

passed down through her nephew, the late Raul Grijalva, and her great- niece, Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva. Her courage, faith, hope, and love shaped generations.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to provide a history lesson. In 1598, New Mexico got its name. In 2026, Donald Trump's Presidency is the most unpopular of any President. His Iran war has pushed diesel prices to record levels, and his tariffs have cost Americans thousands.

How does he address the affordability crisis he created?

It is by slapping a New America label on the State of New Mexico. Let me give Mr. Trump a history lesson. New Mexicans are proud of our name and proudly patriotic. New Mexican soldiers fought in the Revolutionary War. We defeated the Confederacy at Glorieta Pass and stopped slavery's westward march. We fought for civil rights.

A New Mexican won the Supreme Court case declaring that Native Americans had the right to vote in every election everywhere.

While Trump makes billions off his Presidency and tries to gut Head Start, New Mexicans have universal childcare, free college, and no child will go hungry in our classrooms.

We have multicultural bilingual education that celebrates our diversity in a State that is 49 percent Latino, 11 percent Native American, and has some of the best ranchers and dairy farmers anywhere.

Hardworking New Mexicans are the opposite of the gold-collared, corrupt politicians who cater to Trump no matter how crazy he acts.

Mr. Trump, New Mexico has been New Mexico since before you got to these shores, and we will always be New Mexico.

moment of silence honoring indian boarding school victims

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize September 30, 2026, as National Day of Remembrance to honor those who were forced to attend Indian boarding schools and to recognize Indian boarding school victims and survivors.

Across New Mexico, there were 52 Indian boarding schools where Native American children were forced to relinquish their own indigenous heritage and language.

I call upon my colleagues to support H.R. 7325, the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies in the United States Act, to formally investigate, document, and report on boarding schools, their policies, and the generational effects on Native American peoples.

We must support the healing of survivors, descendants, and Tribal communities. Many of the children never returned home to their families or their communities.

Mr. Speaker, I ask for a moment of silence for those children who did not survive, and may they never be forgotten.

honoring the life of randy lupe

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life of Randy Lupe, a wildland firefighter who helped protect New Mexico during the Frijoles fire.

A member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, Randy came with California Complex Incident Management Team 8 as the fire threatened rural communities. He spent 10 days supporting the response, carrying with him nearly 30 years of experience.

Randy brought laughter to long assignments and faith to difficult moments. He prayed with his crew, lifted their spirits, stood up for his fellow firefighters, and lived by a simple creed: Do what is right.

Tragically, Randy died as a result of a medical emergency while serving our communities. He is one of 61 firefighters we have lost this fire season.

Northern New Mexico mourns Randy and honors his sacrifice. He answered the call when we needed him most. We will remember him as a hero.

honoring catherine garduno

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor Catherine Garduno who recently passed away in Penasco, New Mexico, at the age of 96.

Catherine embodied resilience, faith, service, and love of country. The youngest of 12 children born to a sheepherder and a cook, she became her family's first college graduate, earning an education degree from the College of St. Joseph in Albuquerque.

A letter to Senator Pete Domenici brought her to our Nation's Capital, an experience she shared throughout her 35 years as an elementary schoolteacher. She even taught my district director in third grade.

Widowed, Catherine raised six children with strength and devotion. A devout Catholic, she received the Archbishop of Santa Fe's St. Francis Award for Volunteer of the Year. Her legacy passed down through her nephew, the late Raul Grijalva, and her great-niece, Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva. Her courage, faith, hope, and love shaped generations.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding me time.

Chuck Edwards' behavior over the past 2 years is disgusting and horrible. The sexual harassment of two young women on his staff and his abhorrent abuse of power is outlandish and disturbing.

He not only threatened the careers and safety of his staff with his behavior, but he broke the promise he made to Americans to act with dignity and integrity.

Since he continues to show no remorse, it is obvious that Edwards refuses to understand sexual harassment or his abuse of power. If we don't take action today, there is no opportunity for these women to receive justice.

Mr. Speaker, every Member must vote to censure him.

Over the course of these 2 years, he sent two young women on his staff mountains of expensive gifts, including designer purses, personalized handguns, and jewelry. He took them on intimate dinners, trips, and sent them late-night messages, despite the women making it clear they were uncomfortable. He even skipped votes. He skipped votes to decorate one of the staffer's Christmas tree.

One of the staff, as we heard, essentially said she feared retaliation. When

she said: ``I worry about having somebody with that power against me,'' that is fear of retaliation.

Not only did he disrespect these women, he disregarded his duties to his constituents. For him, decorating a Christmas tree was more important than showing up to the vote, as his constituents expected when they sent him to Congress.

Even after this investigation, he continues to deny that this behavior was harassment. I basically do not see any remorse in his 22 pages or what he spoke today. Those 22 pages are basically a rant defending his actions.

He is someone who fails to see how what he has done has negatively impacted the lives and careers of these two young women. Because of Mr. Edwards' harassment, these two women don't work here anymore.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Committee on Ethics. I thank them for their thorough and efficient investigation. I thank the chair and the ranking member for their work. Without their investigation, we may never have known that Edwards spent years sexually harassing two young women on his staff.

This is textbook sexual harassment, and Congress must take action; but I say that the penalty should match the harassment. The precedent of censure, I believe, is not enough. These women lost their jobs because of Mr. Edwards' behavior. He should lose his.

It is time we reform the rules in Congress so abusers like Edwards are at least stripped of committee assignments or expelled if the offense calls for it--after an investigation and after a vote of the full floor--which is what we are doing today, because serving in Congress is a privilege and not an honor. It is not a right.

The American people continue to expect us to act with dignity, and if that trust is broken, there must be accountability.

We need to protect women in the House from retaliation and make sure that the men who abuse their power face real, substantive consequences. That is exactly why the Democratic Women's Caucus, together with the GOP Women's Caucus, has been working to end the widespread problem of sexual misconduct on the Hill. We are fighting to make Congress a place where our staffers feel safe coming to work.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for the censure.