| Speaker | Time | Text |
|---|---|---|
|
House Resolution 537
00:05:03
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|
unidentified
|
Global markets, and that's the principal source of revenue. | |
| You are right that during the Obama administration, there was an agreement on limiting Iran's, temporarily limiting Iran's nuclear program. | ||
| And as part of that, Iran's central bank reserves that had been held by the United States frozen were returned. | ||
| That was hundreds of billions of dollars. | ||
| You're absolutely right about that. | ||
| And that is something that Iran did indeed use to develop its nuclear program. | ||
| Now, as for this being a forever war, Iran was a very friendly country. | ||
| Watch the rest of this on our free C-SPAN Now video app as we take you now to the U.S. Capitol where the House is gambling in. | ||
| This is live coverage on C-SPAN. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I rise to a question of the privileges of the House and offer the resolution that was previously noticed. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The clerk will report the resolution. | |
| House Resolution 537, resolved that Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors and that the following articles of impeachment be exhibited to the Senate. | ||
| Articles of impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives of the United States of America in the name of itself and of the people of the United States of America against Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, and maintenance and support of its impeachment against him for high crimes and misdemeanors. | ||
| Article 1, abuse of presidential powers by disregarding the separation of powers, devolving American democracy into authoritarianism by unconstitutionally usurping Congress's power to declare war. | ||
| In his conduct of the Office of President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of the President of the United States, and to the best of his ability preserve, protect, | ||
| and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, abused the powers of the presidency when he disregarded the doctrine of separation of powers by usurping Congress's power to declare war and ordered the United States military to bomb another country without the unconstitutionally mandated congressional authorization or notice to Congress, | ||
| cognizant of the fact that should another country's military bomb a facility within the United States of America, it would be a de facto declaration of war against the United States of America. | ||
| On June 12, 2025, the State of Israel initiated attacks on Iran ostensibly to target sites and individuals of importance to Iran's nuclear program. | ||
| Iran retaliated and the conflict was escalated between Israel and Iran, though at no point did Iran pose any imminent threat to the United States. | ||
| On June 21, 2025, President Trump announced successful attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran, Fordo, Natanz, and Estevan, Estevan Estehan via his social media network, TrueSocial. | ||
| President Trump failed to seek prior congressionally mandated authorization for the use of military force. | ||
| Congressional leaders were not appropriately briefed or notified of the attack plans, despite foreign leaders being given advance notice of the planned U.S. military action. | ||
| President Trump's unilateral, unprovoked use of force without congressional authorization or notice constitutes an abuse of power when there was no imminent threat to the United States, which facilitates the devolution of American democracy into authoritarianism. | ||
| With an authoritarian president who has instigated an attack on the United States Capitol, denied persons due process of the law, and called for the impeachment of federal judges who ruled against him, making Donald J. Trump a threat to American democracy. | ||
| Article 1, Section 8, Clause 11 of the United States Constitution grants Congress the sole power to declare war. | ||
| The Congress shall have the power to declare war. | ||
| At the time, the framers of the Constitution emphasized the goal of limiting the monarchial power of any single individual person to take a country to war over personal whims and preferences. | ||
| No constitutional exception exists for a successful military action. | ||
| In starting his illegal and unconstitutional war with Iran without the constitutionally mandated consent of Congress or appropriate notice to Congress, President Trump acted in direct violation of the war powers clause of the Constitution. | ||
|
Devolution Of Democracy
00:13:08
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||
| President Trump has evolved and continues to devolve American democracy into authoritarianism by disregarding the separation of powers and now usurping congressional war powers. | ||
| In all of this, Donald J. Trump has abused the powers of the presidency in a manner contrary to his trust as president, has become a threat to American democracy, subverted our constitutional government, and devolved democracy into authoritarianism to the great prejudice of the cause of law and justice and to the manifest injury of the people of the United States. | ||
| Wherefore, Donald J. Trump, by such conduct, warrants impeachment and trial and removal from office. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The resolution qualifies. | |
| For what purpose does the gentleman from Georgia, Mr. Scott, seek recognition? | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I have a motion at the desk. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The clerk will report the motion. | |
| Mr. Austin Scott of Georgia moves to lay the resolution on the table. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Georgia. | |
| Those in favor say aye. | ||
| Those opposed, no. | ||
| In Penny, the chair, the ayes have it. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I ask for the yeas and nays. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The yeas and nays are requested. | |
| Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. | ||
| A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. | ||
| Members will record their votes by electronic device. | ||
| Pursuant to clause 9 of Rule 20, this 15-minute vote on the motion to table will be followed by five-minute votes on ordering the previous question on the House Resolution 530 and adoption of House Resolution 530 if ordered. | ||
| This is a 15-minute vote. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, and still I rise. | ||
| And I rise today because I believe my country to be at the crossroads of democracy and autocracy. | ||
| The moment of decision is near. | ||
| We will have to decide whether we will have a country that abides by a constitution that is meaningful or ignores a constitution such that it becomes meaningless. | ||
| I choose to stand on the grounds laid by the founders and framers of the Constitution. | ||
| I stand today to announce that at the conclusion of this one-minute message, I will bring Articles of impeachment to the attention of the House of Representatives. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I yield back. | ||
| For what purposes, gentlemen from Texas, what purpose does a gentleman from Texas seek recognition? | ||
| Speaker, pursuant to Clause 2A1 of Rule 9, I rise to give notice of my intention to raise a question of the privileges of the House. | ||
| The form of the resolution is as follows: H. Res 537 impeaching Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors. | ||
| In the House of Representatives, June 24, 2025, Mr. Al Green of Texas submitted the following resolution. | ||
| Resolution impeaching Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors. | ||
| Resolved that Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors and the following articles of impeachment be exhibited to the Senate. | ||
| Articles of impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives of the United States of America and in the name of itself and the people of the United States of America against Donald J. Trump, | ||
| President of the United States of America in maintenance and support of his impeachment against him for high crimes and misdemeanors. | ||
| Article 1: abuse of presidential powers by disregarding the separation of powers, devolving American democracy into authoritarianism by unconstitutionally usurping Congress's power to declare war. | ||
| In his conduct of the Office of President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, in violation of his constitutional oath, faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States, and to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, | ||
| and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, | ||
| Abused the powers of the presidency when he disregarded the doctrine of separation of powers by usurping Congress's power to declare war and ordered the United States military to bomb another country without the constitutionally mandated congressional Authorization. | ||
| or notice to Congress. | ||
| Cognizant of the fact that should another country's military bomb a facility within the United States of America, it would be a de facto declaration of war against the United States of America. | ||
| On June 12, 2025, the state of Israel initiated attacks on Iran, ostensibly to target sites and individuals of importance to Iran's nuclear program. | ||
| Iran retaliated and the conflict has escalated between Israel and Iran. | ||
| Though no point, though at no point did Iran pause, pose any imminent threat to the United States. | ||
| On June 21, 2025, President Trump announced successful attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran, Furdo, Natans, and Estehan via his social media network, Truth Social. | ||
| President Trump has failed to seek prior congressionally mandated authorization for the use of military force. | ||
| Congressional leaders were not appropriately briefed or notified of the attack plans, despite foreign leaders being given advance notice of the planned U.S. military action. | ||
| President Trump's unilateral, unprovoked use of force without congressional authorization or notice constitutes an abuse of power when there was no imminent threat to the United States, | ||
| which facilitates the devolution of American democracy into authoritarianism with an authoritarian president who has instigated an attack on the United States Capitol, | ||
| denied persons due process of the law, and called for the impeachment of federal judges who ruled against him, making Donald J. Trump a threat to American democracy. | ||
| Article 1, Section 8, Clause 11 of the United States Constitution grants Congress the sole power to declare war. | ||
| Quote, the Congress shall have the power to declare war, end quote. | ||
| At the time, the framers of the Constitution emphasized the goal of limiting the monarchical power of any single individual person to take a country to war over personal whims and preferences. | ||
| No constitutional exception exists for a successful military action. | ||
| In starting his illegal and unconstitutional war with Iran without the constitutionally mandated consent of Congress or appropriate notice to Congress, President Trump acted in direct violation of the war powers clause of the Constitution. | ||
| President Trump has devolved and continues to devolve American democracy into authoritarianism by disregarding the separation of powers and now usurping congressional war powers. | ||
| In all this, Donald J. Trump has abused the powers of the presidency in a manner contrary to his trust as president, | ||
| has become a threat to American democracy, subverted our constitutional government, and devolved democracy into authoritarianism to the great prejudice of the cause of law and justice and to the manifest injury of the people of the United States. | ||
| Wherefore, Donald J. Trump, by such conduct, warrants impeachment and trial and removal from office. | ||
| I yield back the balance of my time. | ||
| Under Rule 9, a resolution offered from the floor by a member other than the majority leader or the minority leader as a question of the privileges of the House has immediate precedence only at a time designated by the chair within two legislative days after the resolution is properly noticed. | ||
| Pending that designation, the form of the resolution noticed by the gentleman from Texas will appear in the record at this point. | ||
|
Pilots Violate Ceasefire
00:14:37
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||
| The chair will not at this point determine whether the resolution constitutes a question of privilege. | ||
| That determination will be made at the time designated for consideration of the resolution. | ||
| I don't think so, but I'm not happy that Israel is going out now. | ||
| There was one rocket that I guess was fired overboard. | ||
| It was after the time limit, and it missed its target. | ||
| And now Israel's going out. | ||
| These guys got to calm down. | ||
| Ridiculous. | ||
| I didn't like plenty of things I saw yesterday. | ||
| I didn't like the fact that Israel unloaded right after we made the deal. | ||
| They didn't have to unload. | ||
| And I didn't like the fact that the retaliation was very strong. | ||
| But in all fairness, Israel unloaded a lot. | ||
| And now I hear Israel just went out because they felt it was violated by one rocket that didn't land anywhere. | ||
| That's not what we want. | ||
| I'll tell you. | ||
| And I'm telling you, I'm not happy about that, Israel, either. | ||
| All I do is play both sides. | ||
| I'm going now, as you know, to NATO. | ||
| Some of you are going with me, and I think it's going to be successful. | ||
| We'll see. | ||
| I'll let you know. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Are you going, Deng, that women, it's a new dawn in the Middle East thanks to the agreement you managed to achieve? | |
| What are your future plans for the region for Saudi Arabia, Israel, Gaza, the hostages? | ||
| Look, you're asking me about women in the Middle East. | ||
| It's getting a lot better. | ||
| Things are happening at a high level. | ||
| As you know, Saudi Arabia has done a really good job. | ||
| It's coming out far faster than I thought. | ||
| So we're very happy about what's happening with women in the Middle East. | ||
|
unidentified
|
No, I'm talking about the new dawn in the Middle East that you managed to achieve last night. | |
| You know, the region is going to a new place. | ||
| We can speak to women. | ||
| Can you tell us what your future plans for Gaza, for the hostages? | ||
| It's a new dawn. | ||
| I appreciate the question. | ||
| You're very nice. | ||
| Who are you? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you. | |
| I'm Naria Kraus from Israeli. | ||
| Shuttleworthy News. | ||
| We have to have Israel calm down because they went on a mission this morning. | ||
| I got to get Israel to calm down now. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Do you have to speak with the violence and be talking about it? | |
| I push both sides not to violate the ceasefire. | ||
| But before coming from the region, suggest that the sides accuse each other for violating the ceasefire. | ||
| I think they both violated it. | ||
| I don't think they, I'm not sure they did it intentionally. | ||
| They couldn't rein people back. | ||
| I don't like the fact that Israel went out this morning at all, and I'm going to see if I can stop it. | ||
| So as soon as I get away from you, I'm going to see if I can stop it, okay? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Are you talking to Yahoo, sir? | |
| How confident are you making your watch? | ||
| You think it's been completely demolished? | ||
| I think it's been completely demolished. | ||
| I think the reason we're here is because those pilots, those B-2 pilots, did an unbelievable job. | ||
| And, you know, the fake news, like CNN in particular, they're trying to, you know, they're trying to say, well, I agree that it was destroyed, but maybe not that destroyed. | ||
| You know what they're doing? | ||
| They're really hurting great pilots that put their lives in the line. | ||
| CNN is scum, and so is MS, DNC. | ||
| They're all. | ||
| And frankly, the networks aren't much better. | ||
| It's all fake news, but they should not have done that. | ||
| Those pilots hit their targets. | ||
| Those targets were obliterated. | ||
| And the pilots should be given credit. | ||
| They're not after the pilots. | ||
| They're after me. | ||
| They want to try and demean. | ||
| Iran will never rebuild its nuclear. | ||
| From there, absolutely not. | ||
| That place is under rock. | ||
| That place is demolished. | ||
| The B-2 pilots did their job. | ||
| They did it better than anybody could even imagine. | ||
| They hit late in the evening. | ||
| It was dark with no moon, and they hit that target with every one of those things, and that place is gone. | ||
| But when I see CNN all night long, they're trying to say, well, maybe it wasn't really as demolished as we thought it was demolished. | ||
| You take a look at the pinpricks, and you see, that place is gone. | ||
| And I will say, I think CNN ought to apologize to the pilots with the V-2s. | ||
| I think that MSDNC ought to apologize. | ||
| I think these guys really, these networks and these cable networks are real losers. | ||
| You really are. | ||
| You're real losers. | ||
| You're gutless losers. | ||
| I say that to CNN because I watch it. | ||
| I have no choice. | ||
| I got to watch that garbage. | ||
| It's all garbage. | ||
| It's all fake news. | ||
| But I think CNN is a gutless group of people. | ||
| And the people that run it, nobody even knows it's been sold so many times. | ||
| But the people that run it ought to be ashamed. | ||
| MSDNC, a guy named Brian Roberts, he heads it. | ||
| He's a disgrace. | ||
| He's a weak, pathetic disgrace. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Iran violated the peace agreement and the ceasefire agreement. | |
| Do you believe that Iran is still committed? | ||
| You see it? | ||
| Yeah, I do. | ||
| They violated it, but Israel violated it too. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Are you questioning if Israel was committed? | |
| Israel, as soon as we made the deal, they came out and they dropped a load of bombs, the likes of which I've never seen before. | ||
| The biggest load that we've seen. | ||
| I'm not happy with Israel. | ||
| You know, when I say, okay, now you have 12 hours, you don't go out in the first hour and just drop everything you have on them. | ||
| So I'm not happy with them. | ||
| I'm not happy with Iran either. | ||
| But I'm really unhappy if Israel's going out this morning because of one rocket that didn't land, that was shot, perhaps by mistake, that didn't land. | ||
| I'm not happy about that. | ||
| You know what? | ||
| We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don't know what the fuck they're doing. | ||
| Do you understand that? | ||
| Hello, everybody. | ||
|
unidentified
|
How are you? | |
| Are you breaking news? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Everything good. | |
| Israel, as you know, turned back. | ||
| They didn't do that raid this morning, fortunately. | ||
| That was a big thing. | ||
| Appreciate it. | ||
| They had a lot of planes going, and they were going to do something, and they didn't do it. | ||
| We're happy about that. | ||
| Very happy about that. | ||
| So the ceasefire is very much in effect. | ||
| And I think we're going to keep it there for a long time. | ||
| Did you speak to President Out Prime Minister Netanyahu about that? | ||
|
unidentified
|
What did you tell him? | |
| You said, you've got to turn back the planes. | ||
| They were going to go because, look, they hit him very hard after we made the deal yesterday. | ||
| They were entitled to it, but nobody thought that would have happened. | ||
| But they hit him very hard. | ||
| And that shouldn't have happened. | ||
| And then, as you know, Iran hit them very hard last night because of that. | ||
| I don't think they would have, except for the first hard hit. | ||
| And I guess a missile was launched a couple of minutes afterwards, which went nowhere, which hit nothing. | ||
| And there was going to be a retaliation this morning by Israel. | ||
| And they said, you got to call back the planes. | ||
| It's enough. | ||
| It's enough. | ||
| And they did, which I respect very greatly. | ||
| So nobody was killed. | ||
| That was the sort. | ||
| But they had a lot of planes going in the wrong direction. | ||
| You know that, right? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Do you want any consequences for Israel or Iran for breaking? | |
| They didn't do anything. | ||
| No, they didn't do anything. | ||
| They would have if they put out a statement on truth and they didn't do anything. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Sir, how are you confident that this might not happen again, say in a couple weeks that tired of it? | |
| I think they don't want it to happen again. | ||
| And Iran's not going to have a nuclear weapon, by the way. | ||
| I think it's the last thing on their mind right now. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Mr. President, did Iran make any commitments yesterday about uranium enrichment? | |
| What? | ||
| About uranium enrichment. | ||
| They're not going to have enrichment and they're not going to have a nuclear weapon. | ||
| And they know that. | ||
| They're going to get on to being a great trading nation. | ||
| You know, they're very good traders. | ||
| And they're going to be a great trading nation and they have a lot of oil. | ||
| They're going to do well. | ||
| They're not going to have a nuclear weapon. | ||
|
unidentified
|
So did they promise? | |
| The only thing on Iran's mind right now is nuclear weapons. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Can you clarify what you meant when you mentioned regime change in your truth social post the other night? | |
| Regime change. | ||
| Do you want to see regime change in Iran? | ||
| If there was, there was. | ||
| But no, I don't want to. | ||
| I'd like to see everything calm down as quickly as possible. | ||
| Regime change takes chaos. | ||
| And ideally, we don't want to see so much chaos. | ||
| So we'll see how it does. | ||
| You know, the Iranians are very good traders, very good business people. | ||
| And they got a lot of oil. | ||
| They should be fine. | ||
| They should be able to rebuild and do a good job. | ||
| They're never going to have nuclear, but other than that, they should do a great job. | ||
| Which is exactly where I've been saying for years. | ||
| cannot let iran have a nuclear weapon but we're gonna be with where's marco I believe Marco's here somewhere close. | ||
| You know, our great secretary has said. | ||
| But we cannot let them have a nuclear weapon. | ||
| They won't have a nuclear weapon. | ||
| And I will tell you, the last thing on their minds is nuclear weapons. | ||
| They don't even want to think about nuclear. | ||
| And our B-2 pilots made this all possible. | ||
| They had a magnificent hit in the dark of night with no moon, no light, no nothing. | ||
| They hit the target perfectly, wiped it out. | ||
| And the press is very disrespectful. | ||
| I saw CNN fake news going, well, maybe it wasn't a perfect hit. | ||
| It was perfect. | ||
| They said maybe it did destroy it. | ||
| We agree. | ||
| It did destroy it, but maybe it could have destroyed it more. | ||
| No, no, it couldn't have destroyed it more. | ||
| Everyone hit. | ||
| And it's very disrespectful to those great geniuses and patriots that flew those planes through tremendous dangers. | ||
| So CNN and MS DNC are a disgrace. | ||
| And so are the others. | ||
| I mean, they're pretty much all in disgrace. | ||
| But it's an amazing period of time. | ||
| Now we're going to NATO. | ||
| And we'll get a new set of problems. | ||
| We'll solve a new set of problems. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Do you think you'll be with Zelensky when you're there? | |
| Yeah, probably. | ||
| I'll see you. | ||
| What would you say to him? | ||
| Say, how are you doing? | ||
| He's in a tough situation. | ||
| Should have never been there. | ||
|
unidentified
|
So you said a couple days ago that you didn't think the U.S. should have to agree to the 5% increase in GDP on defense. | |
| No. | ||
| I was the one that said that's what they should be paying, as you know. | ||
| No, I should do something. | ||
| And they're having a problem with Spain. | ||
| There's a problem with Spain. | ||
| Because Spain's not agreeing, which is very unfair to the rest of them, for us. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The U.S. won't be increasing our GDP to 5%. | |
| We should pay what everyone else, you know, they're in Europe. | ||
| We're not. | ||
| You know, a lot of that money goes to rebuilding their bridges, their roads, so it can take heavy equipment. | ||
| And, you know, we don't have any roads in Europe. | ||
| We don't have any bridges in Europe. | ||
| So, no, it wouldn't be quite the same thing for us. | ||
| But we're with them. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Are you still committed to Article 5 of NATO? | |
| Depends on your definition. | ||
| There's numerous definitions of Article 5. | ||
| You know that, right? | ||
| But I'm committed to being their friends. | ||
| You know, I've become friends with many of those leaders, and I'm committed to helping them. | ||
|
unidentified
|
What do you want the role of NATO to be going forward once these other countries are expending? | |
| By having a unified system, I think we're going to have stronger peace, better peace. | ||
| And I think we have that. | ||
| You know, when I went to NATO, they were broke when I first started this whole thing. | ||
| It seems like a long time ago, nine years, right? | ||
| But they were broke. | ||
| I knew it immediately. | ||
| I said, you guys are broke. | ||
| They weren't paying their dues. | ||
| Seven of the 28 countries at the time it was 28 were paying their dues, but they weren't paying very much. | ||
| NATO was broke. | ||
| And I said, you're going to have to pay. | ||
| And we did a whole thing. | ||
| And now they're paying a lot. | ||
| Then I said, you're going to have to lift it to 4% or 5%. | ||
| And 5% is better. | ||
| They just, I guess they're voting on that today, but they're going to be lifting it to 5%. | ||
| That's good. | ||
| It gives them much more power. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Mr. President, if there's language in the final summit declaration about aggression by Russia, would you be okay with that kind of language? | |
| Well, I'll have to take a look at it. | ||
| But, you know, I'd like to see a deal with Russia. | ||
| As you know, Vladimir called me up. | ||
| He said, can I help you with Iran? | ||
| I said, no, I don't need help with Iran. | ||
| I need help with you. | ||
| And I hope we're going to be getting a deal done with Russia. | ||
| It's a shame. | ||
| 6,000 soldiers died last week. | ||
| More. | ||
| 6,500 soldiers died last week. | ||
| Russia, Ukraine. | ||
| A war that never would have happened if I was president. | ||
| So enjoy your flight. | ||
| Let me ask you one more follow-up. | ||
|
unidentified
|
In your comments just now about Article 5, that will probably make some people in Europe concerned. | |
| Can you clarify what you mean? | ||
| Are you still committed to mutual defense? | ||
| I'm committed to saving lives. | ||
| I'm committed to life and safety. | ||
| And I'm going to give you an exact definition when I get there. | ||
| I just don't want to do it on the back of an airplane. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Okay? | |
| And one other question on energy. | ||
| What's your take on the oil price situation right now? | ||
| And are you concerned? | ||
|
unidentified
|
I love it. | |
| It dropped almost $10 yesterday. | ||
| I put out a statement, get it down, because a lot of people aren't able to do things when the energy goes down. | ||
| We're going to have a lot less conflict. | ||
| So it came down, and our energy department's doing a great job. | ||
| We're drilling like we've never drilled before. | ||
| We're keeping it down. | ||
| We're going to keep it down until all these wars are settled. | ||
|
Biden's Legacy Debate
00:06:18
|
||
| Thank you very much, everybody. | ||
| I'll see you. | ||
| Biden led a lot of supercells. | ||
| Biden was an incompetent president, had no idea what he was doing. | ||
| He hardly ever signed a document. | ||
| Other people signed documents for him with the Autopen. | ||
| It was gross incompetence. | ||
| And among everything else, he let a lot of supercells in, many from Iran. | ||
| But hopefully we'll take care of them. | ||
| What Biden did to this country should never be forgotten. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Members are voting on a GOP motion to table an articles of impeachment resolution against President Trump for ordering military strikes against Iran without prior congressional approval. | |
| The resolution was introduced by Democratic Congressman Al Green. | ||
| Nays are | ||
| 344, the nays are 79. | ||
| The motion is adopted. | ||
| Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. | ||
| Pursuant to clause 8 of Rule 20, the unfinished business is the vote on ordering the previous question on House Resolution 530, on which the yays and nays are ordered. | ||
| The clerk will report the title of the resolution. | ||
| House calendar number 34, House Resolution 530. | ||
| Resolution provided for consideration of the bill H.R. 3944, making appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30th, 2026, and for other purposes. | ||
| Providing for consideration of the bill H.R. 275 to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to publish on a monthly basis the number of special interest aliens encountered attempting to unlawfully enter the United States and for other purposes. | ||
| Providing for consideration of the bill H.R. 875 to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide that aliens who have been convicted of or who have committed an offense for driving while intoxicated or impaired are inadmissible and deportable. | ||
| And providing for consideration of the resolution, House Resolution 516, condemning the violent June 2025 riots in Los Angeles, California. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The question is on ordering the previous question. | |
| Members will record their votes by electronic device. | ||
| is a five-minute vote. | ||
| Members have been working on the debate rules for four bills, including 2026 military construction and veterans affairs spending. | ||
| Other bills in the package include a measure calling for the deportation of non-citizens for driving under the influence, condemning the recent LA protests over immigration enforcement, and a bill to publish Homeland Security and Counters with Migrants posing security risks. | ||
| This vote is procedural in nature. | ||
| We expect to vote on those debate rules next. | ||
| While members are voting, we'll show you remarks by Senate Minority Leader Schumer from earlier on the delay of an Iran-classified briefing. | ||
|
Last Vote Drama
00:13:44
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||
| Okay, good morning, everybody. | ||
| Thank you for being here. | ||
| Now, this last-minute postponement of our briefing is outrageous. | ||
| It's evasive. | ||
| It's derelict. | ||
| They're bobbing and weaving and ducking. | ||
| Senators deserve full transparency. | ||
| There is a legal obligation for the administration to inform Congress about precisely what is happening. | ||
| What are they afraid of? | ||
| Why won't they engage Congress in the critical details? | ||
| The results of the recent strike, the scope and trajectory of the conflict, the administration's long-term strategy to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, the potential risks facing American citizens and our service members, who we all have an obligation to protect. | ||
| To be abundantly clear, neither Pete Hegseth nor Marco Rubio was scheduled to attend this hearing. | ||
| If Rubio and Hegseth want to come up, I don't think they'll be informing us of very much compared to the people who will be there today. | ||
| But if they want to come up on Thursday, in addition, not in replacement of this hearing, that's okay. | ||
| But the obstruction of this administration on a crucial issue like this, where American lives and particularly the lives of American service members are at stake, is their obligation. | ||
| And it undermines the very principles of accountability and oversight that safeguard our democracy. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Can you explain for just a moment here in terms of the briefers who you wanted? | |
| So people wanted HegSeth and others, but these are high-level people who were scheduled to come. | ||
| Yeah, no, we didn't want, we don't care. | ||
| I think Hegseth is probably just going to give us talking points. | ||
| But General Kane is scheduled to come. | ||
| He probably knows more about the military operations, both now and in the future, than anybody. | ||
| There were good people from the State Department who knew all of the diplomatic stuff. | ||
| We want to hear them. | ||
| I don't want to get involved in classified information, but the Congress, in a classified hearing, is entitled to know how much of this nuclear material was destroyed, how much escaped, et cetera. | ||
| And in terms of my briefing, well, you remember what happened Saturday night. | ||
| About an hour before, or an hour and a half before the action. | ||
| We didn't know the exact time the action occurred, but shortly before the action occurred or during it, we're not sure which, they called me up and said, we're taking imminent action. | ||
| We can't tell you what country. | ||
| I said, can you give me some details? | ||
| They said no. | ||
| That's the extent to the briefing I've gotten. | ||
| I've asked for a briefing. | ||
| I asked for a briefing yesterday. | ||
| Didn't get it. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Does that make you feel that a War Powers resolution is necessary as soon as possible? | |
| And also, how would you respond to the Speaker's claim of a War Powers resolution being unconstitutional? | ||
| Well, I do not believe the Speaker is very wrong. | ||
| It is not unconstitutional. | ||
| And second, it's all the more reason we need the War Powers Act, where they'd have a legal obligation to tell the Congress the details they're now avoiding to tell us. | ||
| And again, they're ducking, they're bobbing, they're weaving. | ||
| What have they got to hide? | ||
| Why aren't they informing their legal obligation, fulfilling their legal obligation to come and tell the Congress what's going on? | ||
| What have they had to hide? | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you. | |
| What explanation were you to give in for this delight? | ||
| Just to answer this final question. | ||
| We were not given, I was given no explanation for this delay. | ||
| I don't know what Senator Thune was, but they said, well, Hegseth and Rubio will be here Thursday. | ||
| We're happy to hear them on Thursday, in addition to this briefing, which we think will be far more valuable than hearing from Heg Seth and Rubio, who are secretaries. | ||
|
unidentified
|
On this vote the yeas are 217, the nays are 208. | |
| On this | ||
| vote. | ||
| The yeas are 219 and the nays are 208. | ||
| The motion is adopted. | ||
| The question is on passage of the bill. | ||
| Those in favor, please say aye. | ||
| Those opposed, say no. | ||
| The ayes have it. | ||
| For what purposes? | ||
| A gentleman from Massachusetts Secretary. | ||
| A recorded vote. | ||
| A recorded vote is requested. | ||
| Those favoring a recorded vote will rise. | ||
| A sufficient number having risen, a recorded vote is ordered. | ||
| Members will record their votes by electronic device. | ||
| This is a five-minute vote. | ||
| Members are voting now to approve debate rules on four bills, including 2026 military construction and Veterans Affairs spending. | ||
| Other bills in the package include a measure calling for the deportation of non-citizens for driving under the influence, condemning the recent LA protests over immigration enforcement, and a bill to publish Homeland Security Encounters with Migrants posing security risks. | ||
| This should be the last vote of the day. | ||
| So currently, | ||
| members are voting to approve debate rules on four bills, including 2026 military construction and Veterans Affairs spending. | ||
| Other bills in this package include a measure calling for the deportation of non-citizens for driving under the influence, condemning the recent LA protests over immigration enforcement, and a bill to publish Homeland Security Encounters with Migrants posing security risks. | ||
| expect this should be the last vote of the day. | ||
|
Why The Briefing Was Cancelled
00:03:33
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|
unidentified
|
17, the nays are 208, 207, 206. | |
| Again, the yeas are 217, the nays are 206. | ||
| The resolution is adopted. | ||
| Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. | ||
| Well, you probably said it right. | ||
| The gentlewoman from New York seek recognition. | ||
| For what purpose does the gentlewoman from New York seek recognition? | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I have a parliamentary inquiry. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentlewoman will state her inquiry. | |
| Mr. Speaker, why is it that the Israel-Iran war briefing we were supposed to be having today has been canceled? | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentlewoman is not stating a proper parliamentary inquiry. | |
| Okay, let me state it again. | ||
| We were informed today. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Is the gentlewoman asking an inquiry? | |
| I am. | ||
| The gentleman will state her inquiry. | ||
| My inquiry is, we were informed that we would have a briefing on the Iran-israel war this afternoon and it has been canceled. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Why is that the gentlewoman is still not stating a proper parliamentary inquiry? | |
| Has the speaker been informed that today the briefing for the Iran-israel war has been canceled and why is that? | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentlewoman may consult with the speaker, but this is not a proper parliamentary inquiry. | |
| Why is that? | ||
|
unidentified
|
It's. | |
| Not relevant to the proceedings on the floor. | ||
| It is. | ||
| It is indeed. | ||
|
unidentified
|
It is indeed that the constitution requires congress be. | |
| The chair is prepared to move on unless the gentlelady has a proper parliamentary inquiry, parliamentary inquiries. | ||
| The gentlelady will state her inquiry. | ||
| The constitution requires that members of Congress be consulted in all matters and be authorized for any wars that are declared by the United States Of America. | ||
| We have not been briefed. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentlewoman is engaging in debate and not an inquiry. | |
| The chair is prepared to move on. | ||
| For what purpose does a gentleman from California seek recognition? | ||
| Does a gentleman from California wish to be recognized? | ||
| Yes, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus... | ||
|
unidentified
|
i offer a privilege resolution and ask for its immediate consideration the clerk will report the resolution house resolution 538 resolve that the following name member be mr speaker i asked unanimous consent that the resolution be considered as read without objection the resolution is agreed to and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table I've done all I can I was like I need someone from armed services Somebody tell me something. | |
|
Yea and Nays Rising
00:05:06
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|
unidentified
|
For what purpose does a gentleman from New York seek recognition? | |
| Speaker, in light of the fact that we don't have this briefing on the Iran-Israel war that will be taking place today, I motion to adjourn until such time that we are briefed. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Second. | |
| Question is on the motion to adjourn. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Questions on the motion to adjourn. | |
| Those in favor say aye. | ||
| Those opposed, no. | ||
| The opinion of the chair, the no's have it. | ||
| Does the gentlewoman request the yeas and nays? | ||
| The yeas and nays are requested. | ||
| Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. | ||
| A sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. | ||
| Members will record their votes by electronic device. | ||
| This will be a 15-minute vote. | ||
| Good morning, | ||
| everybody. | ||
| So good to see you. | ||
| I want to start by continuing to offer my prayers for the safety and security of our service members and all Americans in the Middle East. | ||
| God bless them and God bless our troops who are keeping us safe. | ||
| Now, over the weekend, President Trump delivered peace through strength. | ||
| Operation Midnight Hammer was not only a historic and successful mission, it was a message to Iran. | ||
| A message that resonates for years, if not decades to come. | ||
| Iran will never be allowed to attain a nuclear weapon. | ||
| And if Iran continues to try to go down this path, prepare to face the full fury and wrath of American firepower. | ||
|
Peace Through Strength
00:07:10
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| Because of President Trump's decisive action, the world is a safer place. | ||
| And let me be clear: America is safer, Israel is safer, and our allies are safer. | ||
| And like President Vance said, we are not at war with Iran. | ||
| We are at war with Iran's nuclear program. | ||
| The war against their nuclear program is already paying off. | ||
| And thank you to President Trump for his decisive action again. | ||
| Peace through strength is working. | ||
| Now, switching gears, let me say this. | ||
| The American people are waiting. | ||
| They want to know with certainty that their taxes won't increase $5,000 next year. | ||
| They want to know that violent, illegal immigrants are not in their communities anymore. | ||
| But they don't have it yet because unfortunately, they're still waiting for the One Big Beautiful Act. | ||
| And each day that goes by is another day that Americans don't have the certainty that they deserve. | ||
| Whether you're a small business owner, a senior on Social Security, a tip service worker, or a first responder working overtime to protect our communities, the One Big Beautiful Bill helps you. | ||
| Americans should not have to wait any longer. | ||
| There's no time to waste. | ||
| Let's get this done. | ||
| Let's send this bill to President Trump's desk so it can become law. | ||
| Now, here with me today is a fellow Michigander. | ||
| He's a real person with a real story, waiting for the One Big Beautiful Bill to become law. | ||
| Sam Palmetter is the president of engineering and new product development at Laser Marketing Technologies in my home district of Carroll, Michigan. | ||
| There are leaders in laser marketing and engraving technology. | ||
| And I'll let Sam speak more to this, but they are eagerly awaiting for the immediate expensing for research and development so that they can continue being a leader in innovation right here in the United States of America. | ||
| And now, without further ado, I will turn it over to my constituent and my friend, Sam. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Yeah, I don't need that box. | |
| Good morning. | ||
| I'm not quite that tall, but I don't need that. | ||
| So just real quick, Lisa has been such a Spitfire for us in our district, not just during an election campaign year. | ||
| She's in our factories, in our offices, year after year, checking on us, seeing what we need in our areas. | ||
| And we can't appreciate her more. | ||
| In all honesty, this lady doesn't need to do this, and she's doing it from her heart. | ||
| And I can't thank her enough for what she's doing personally to really help manufacturing in America. | ||
| So with that, let me get on track here for you all, right? | ||
| So thank you to House Republican leadership, including my Congresswomanwoman, the awesome chairman, Lisa McLean, for this opportunity to share the reason the Big Beautiful Bill needs to be signed into law. | ||
| As the founder of Laser Marketing Technologies over 20 years ago and as a lifelong resident of Michigan, a manufacturing state, I've seen firsthand the demise of manufacturing sector in America and good-paying manufacturing jobs. | ||
| It has slowly been outsourced to other countries that have taken advantage of the U.S. My company is one of the last two laser technology companies fully owned and operated in America. | ||
| We had a third competitor from Ohio that tried to hang on but went bankrupt and was subsequently purchased last year by a foreign entity. | ||
| Now think about that, right? | ||
| These are the guys. | ||
| We're the ones that are in the background supplying a lot for the Department of Defense, other items that are critical to our sovereignty. | ||
| And this is going to foreign actors that own it. | ||
| So this is what's happening to America. | ||
| Our manufacturing and IP is being blought off to other countries that need to stop now. | ||
| before we don't have the manufacturing and intellectual property to build what is needed for our military and other vital industries. | ||
| So with that, the following items in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that really matter to me and many other small business owners, not just in Michigan, but throughout the U.S., are the permanent increase of the qualified business income deduction to keep our taxes low and competitive on a global scale, not just in the U.S., but we are competing against everybody else. | ||
| So why is our taxes so much higher than other countries? | ||
| No tax and overtime was great for my employees. | ||
| Just imagine if you're in trades, right? | ||
| You're a trades person and you work an extra 20 hours and you get your check and you look at it. | ||
| You guys ever go through this? | ||
| Anybody? | ||
| Maybe not. | ||
| But if you're in trades or anything like that, even if you work at a grocery store and you see that overtime, you think you're going to bring that in, and that's half of what you thought it was going to be because somebody else got your money and it didn't go in your pocket and it never will. | ||
| Let's change that, right? | ||
| That's part of this big, beautiful bill. | ||
| That's really, really phenomenal, and that should really resonate with everybody that's actually working with their hands, right? | ||
| People that serve you food, everything. | ||
| Specialty deduction, allowance for qualified production property. | ||
| This will allow us to invest into the future and immediately allow us to double our manufacturing space. | ||
| So instead of expensing this across 40 years, I'll be 90 years old by then, right? | ||
| What's that going to matter to me? | ||
| But if I can expense our manufacturing additions and new buildings that we need to build so we can supply the machinery for the U.S., we can do that and immediately write that off. | ||
| And that means something because that puts it back in and we put it right back into our local economy. | ||
| What is that saying, high tide rises all boats? | ||
| That's what this is about, right? | ||
| We do this. | ||
| It's not trickle-down economics or whatever, which I have nothing against, but let's think about it, right? | ||
| If we are putting this money back into the U.S. manufacturing, tradespeople are building these buildings and then qualified, good paying jobs for workers. | ||
| So the One Big Beautiful Act encourages American businesses to create new things in the U.S. to get our economy back on track. | ||
| This bill incentivizes us to create new jobs in the U.S., and we are incentivized to manufacture in the USA. | ||
| And with this new law, we will continue to do this, but at a much, much faster rate. | ||
| I'm excited to keep making it in America for America. | ||
| Thanks. | ||
| Great job. | ||
| The One Big Beautiful Bill is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver real-life results to the American people, as you just heard from Sam. | ||
|
Impact Of The Big Beautiful Bill
00:03:52
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| From energy producers in Louisiana to police officers in Minnesota, this landmark legislation truly holds promise for every single American. | ||
| Today's guests are a testament to that. | ||
| I'm proud to welcome James Stewart to speak this morning on the impact of the big, one big, beautiful bill that it will have on law enforcement officers in Minnesota and across America. | ||
| With more than 30 years of frontline experience, Sheriff Stewart is here today on behalf of the Minnesota Sheriffs Association to represent the men and women who sacrificed their safety, comfort, and time to keep us all safe. | ||
| Some even make the ultimate sacrifice with their lives. | ||
| President Trump and House Republicans stand with our nation's brave law enforcement officers. | ||
| The One Big Beautiful Bill makes clear that we don't just do so with words, but with our actions. | ||
| President Trump campaigned on no tax on overtime, and now we're following through on that promise. | ||
| To the benefit of our men and women in blue, by the way, and their families. | ||
| And I thank the President for his vision of a prosperous America that truly appreciates and honors the bravest among us. | ||
| With that, I'll turn it over to Sheriff Stewart from Minnesota's 6th Congressional District. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Well, thank you, Congressman Emmer, for inviting me to speak this morning and for your leadership. | |
| My name is James Stewart. | ||
| I'm the Executive Director and CEO for the Minnesota Sheriffs Association, a former vice president for the National Sheriffs Association, and Sheriff of Anoka County, located in Minnesota's 6th congressional district. | ||
| After more than 30 years in law enforcement, I know the sacrifice that is required to carry out the mission of protecting our communities. | ||
| The sacrifice of late nights, weekends, and holidays away from the dinner table and special events with your family, early mornings out the door before your children even wake up, and the mental toll of routinely encountering scenes that no human should ever have to witness. | ||
| And the ultimate sacrifice some officers make with their life in exchange for a safer tomorrow for the people that they proudly serve and protect. | ||
| Law enforcement officers sometimes work 100-plus hours per pay period. | ||
| And not only is that time spent away from their family and their friends, it is more time in the line of duty putting their lives at risk. | ||
| No tax and overtime pay would benefit our protectors all across the country in tremendous ways. | ||
| The increase in take-home pay for these deputies and officers rewards the extra hours and the extra efforts that they devote to protecting their communities, impacting their own lives in significant ways. | ||
| That is more money in their pockets to save, to invest, and to grow. | ||
| With more net pay, our protectors could reduce financial burdens and ultimately the related stresses and rely less on second jobs and better focus on serving others in their demanding roles. | ||
| But no tax and overtime won't just lead to a bigger paycheck. | ||
| Law enforcement agencies across America right now are facing staffing shortages and struggle with recruitment and retention like never before. | ||
| No tax and overtime would help keep seasoned officers on the force longer and decrease that turnover. | ||
| The one big beautiful bill passed by the House is the opportunity to honor our men and women in blue and reinforce the vital role that they play in our communities. | ||
| The no-tax and overtime pay policy is a clear message of respect and support to our nation's law enforcement officers, and the impact of this legislation cannot be understated. | ||
| Our protectors across America want to see this change, and you all have the power to make it happen. | ||
|
Supporting American Energy Dominance
00:13:47
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|
unidentified
|
I commend House Republicans for the work that they've done thus far to move this policy closer to the finish line, and I ask on behalf of peace officers across Minnesota and our entire nation that you continue full steam ahead in that work. | |
| For the moms missing dinner with their families tonight, and for the sons missing their birthdays for their families this weekend, and for the men and women in blue putting their lives on the line day after day and hour after hour, let's make this happen. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| Well, over the weekend, we saw President Trump take strong and decisive action to ensure that Iran does not any longer have a nuclear weapons program. | ||
| Not only did the President work with our allies in the region, of course, working very closely with Israel, but the President defended America. | ||
| Again, let's not forget the Ayatollah and many others in his leadership structure have been chanting death to America for years as they tried to get a nuclear weapon under previous presidents who let this build and build for decades and the world knew one day it had to be confronted. | ||
| But the president didn't just take that strong and decisive action under the war powers resolution in compliance with that law. | ||
| He notified Congress within 48 hours of the actions that were taken. | ||
| And hopefully that's as far as it's going to go. | ||
| The president announced yesterday that there is now a ceasefire. | ||
| Again, peace through strength, they're not just words. | ||
| They have to be actions that a president of the United States who's strong and bold and decisive is willing to take those steps to keep America safe. | ||
| And I think most people in the civilized world know that a nuclear-armed Iran is not just bad for America, but it's bad for other countries all around the world. | ||
| Now, we've got another busy week here in Washington. | ||
| Today, we're going to be debating the resolution to condemn the political violence in Minnesota. | ||
| I think you'll see a very strong, bipartisan message being sent by Congress that political violence is never acceptable. | ||
| And you see the actions over the weekend with the state representative and her husband who were brutally murdered, the senator who was nearly killed. | ||
| We keep all of them in our prayers and their families. | ||
| But we know that justice will prevail and ultimately in America, we need to be united when we say that political violence is never the answer. | ||
| We're going to also bring more legislation to protect Americans from illegals who come here and commit violence against our constituents. | ||
| Somebody gets a DUI here while they're here illegally. | ||
| And I saw this in my own district where you had an illegal who came about eight times the legal limit and murdered an 18-year-old girl and her boyfriend. | ||
| And he was fine, but they are no longer with us. | ||
| And we see this every day in communities all across the country. | ||
| We've given President Trump some tools in law like the Lake and Riley Act to keep us safe from people who come here illegally and commit violent acts against our citizens. | ||
| This will be one more of those tools. | ||
| Of course, Friday we're going to have a vote to stand up for our ICE agents and for law enforcement in Los Angeles and other communities who are trying to keep us safe in the face of these violent riots like the LA riots that you're seeing. | ||
| That will be Friday. | ||
| Of course, the overarching focus has been on the one big beautiful bill. | ||
| The Senate finally has the legislation. | ||
| They're moving forward. | ||
| We've continued up here to talk about so many great things that this will do to get our economy back on track, to put more money in the pockets of hardworking families through so many provisions like certainty in the tax code, ensuring that you don't have a massive tax increase that would hit lower and middle income families. | ||
| No tax on tips, no tax on overtime, the ability to have bonus depreciation, some of the other things that would bring investment into this country. | ||
| But we also have so many other provisions. | ||
| Border security, of course, is one, but energy security is a big component of this bill to allow America to continue producing more oil so we don't have to be dependent on foreign countries. | ||
| So world markets aren't worried about an action Iran might take. | ||
| When you saw them talking about shutting off the Strait of Hormuz, you really didn't see much of a change in oil prices because America and our allies can now pick up the slack because you have a president in Donald Trump who wants to open up more American energy opportunities. | ||
| And so do our friends around the world. | ||
| And in this bill, we have a number of provisions to do that. | ||
| But rather than me talk about those provisions, and I love the great work that South Louisiana is involved in in so many different fronts at producing energy for the rest of the country and the world. | ||
| But I am proud to have one of my constituents, Paul Danos, whose family for three generations has been involved in the energy industry. | ||
| He knows just what it takes to produce American energy and the challenges that can be posed if Congress and the White House don't get it right and what opportunities we have ahead for our country if we do get it right. | ||
| That great leader is my friend Paul Danos. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you, Leader Scalise, for having me here today for that introduction. | |
| Good morning, everyone. | ||
| My name is Paul Danos. | ||
| I am CEO and one of the owners of Danos. | ||
| We are a 78-year-old, third-generation family-owned and managed energy services firm headquartered down in southeast Louisiana. | ||
| We provide frontline workforce that enable companies to explore, produce, and develop the energy in the Gulf of America. | ||
| I'm honored to share with you the positive impact that this bill will have on family-run businesses in our areas and our employees around the country, and how critical this bill is for American energy dominance. | ||
| I'm honored to represent so many hardworking people that provide safe, reliable, and affordable energy to our country. | ||
| My grandfather, Alan Danos Sr., he took a risk. | ||
| He had a dream in 1947 to create jobs for his community, prosperity for his community, and security for our nation. | ||
| But during the previous administration, that sort of innovation and spirit was stifled. | ||
| Oil and gas leases were canceled, they were nullified, and altogether stopped. | ||
| This bill is a lifeline for American energy and restores the kind of predictability that businesses like ours need to invest and to grow. | ||
| Predictability keeps capital flowing. | ||
| And when capital flows, companies like Danos can invest in equipment and jobs and people and technology at home. | ||
| You see, offshore projects take years to build their multi-billion dollar investments. | ||
| And without clarity and consistency with lease sales, businesses can't make the long-term investment decisions that are needed to grow their workforce and acquire equipment. | ||
| So when lease sales stall or disappear, that doesn't just cause a pause in our business. | ||
| Those opportunities can vanish. | ||
| So when that happens, good praying jobs across the Gulf Coast and really around the country because the supply chain throughout the country supports our energy in the Gulf of America. | ||
| And that American energy and security is jeopardized. | ||
| So this bill will help to restore American energy dominance. | ||
| It'll make everyday goods less expensive and it'll create jobs to secure America's energy future. | ||
| And we know that energy security is national security. | ||
| The more energy we can produce at home, the more that we can help our allies abroad to make sure that they aren't relying on hostile nations to get their energy. | ||
| The Gulf of America is critical to America's energy economy and security. | ||
| When Congress gets energy policy right, companies like Danos can do what we do best, deliver safe, reliable, affordable American energy. | ||
| I want to thank the Congress and President Trump for making good energy policy a priority in this legislation. | ||
| Now I'll turn it over to Tony McAllister. | ||
| Paul, I know you're the CEO, but I get to control the podium. | ||
| All right, no, that's okay. | ||
|
unidentified
|
They told me something different. | |
| No, it's so great. | ||
| What a great collection of Americans here. | ||
| We wanted to come this morning. | ||
| I have a lot of updates for you, and I'll get to it in a moment, but I want to continue with this theme real quick because the Big Beautiful Bill is so important, literally to every sector of the U.S. economy. | ||
| And we could have chosen constituents of ours from any sector in the economy, but it occurs to me we chose just the letter L as our theme today. | ||
| Okay, you heard about lasers and law enforcement and liquefied natural gas. | ||
| Now we're going to go to logging because I brought Tony McAllister here and she is a small business owner. | ||
| She's going to talk to you about what it would mean to them. | ||
| She's also a mother, and she's the wife of one of our greatest sheriffs in the state of Louisiana. | ||
| They hail from Wynne Parish. | ||
| The sheriff's standing in the back, he's the big guy with the badge. | ||
| You can't miss him. | ||
| But I'm so grateful that Tony is here with us. | ||
| Now I'll turn it over to you. | ||
|
unidentified
|
How about that? | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for having me today. | ||
| So, my name is Toni McAllister. | ||
| I'm a proud resident of rural Louisiana in the 4th congressional district. | ||
| I am a Louisiana logger. | ||
| I'm a mom. | ||
| I'm a wife of a Louisiana sheriff. | ||
| And as a logger for years, small businesses like ours, with our team of 30 hardworking employees, have carried the weight of this governmental system that often seems to grow on the backs of small businesses and middle-class families like mine. | ||
| It's been tough, it's been challenging to compete and to grow and to simply get a fair chance to thrive right here in the U.S. | ||
| But today, I'm filled with gratitude. | ||
| I am thankful to President Trump and the House Republican leadership who have made it a priority to reset this system, to put hardworking Americans first, to support the businesses and the families who are the backbone of this great nation. | ||
| When the One Big Beautiful bill is signed into law, it will finally give small businesses like ours a better opportunity to not just survive but to grow and to succeed. | ||
| Some of these have been mentioned already, but just as a reminder, this legislation will lower the effective tax rate for producing in America, increase and make permanent the small business deduction, double immediate small business expensing, and reduce reporting burdens for small businesses. | ||
| In Louisiana, timber is not just what we do, it's who we are. | ||
| It's the largest agricultural product in the state, and it is vital to the survival of so many rural communities across our state and across the South. | ||
| This bill recognizes this impact of small businesses just like mine. | ||
| It protects us, it strengthens us. | ||
| For far too long, the U.S. has been one of the largest importers of raw pulp, pulp wood, and timber products. | ||
| This has led to the shutdown of many mills and the loss of way too many American jobs. | ||
| So, I want to personally thank the President for continuing to fight to reduce unregulated imports from other countries and for standing firm to support American-made products by American workers. | ||
| Another piece of this bill that hits even closer to home is the historic investment in our border security. | ||
| This will protect our communities and support our law enforcement officers and agencies by keeping dangerous illegals out of our country. | ||
| As a wife of a Louisiana sheriff, knowing that this administration is working hard to stand behind law enforcement gives me a peace of mind. | ||
| It empowers our officers, federal, state, and local, to do their jobs because they know they have the backing of this administration and the Republicans in Congress. | ||
| It means the world to me to see the leaders who value the safety, well-being, and dedication to those who put their lives on the line for us every single day. | ||
| The One Big Beautiful bill is more than policy, it's progress. | ||
| It's progress for small business owners, for working families, for rural communities, and for our law enforcement. | ||
| Again, thank you, Mr. Speaker, for having me. | ||
| Thank you to the President for seeing us. | ||
| Thank you for standing with us. | ||
| Thank you to the House Republicans for working hard to get this done, not just for today, but for future generations. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| Thanks so much. | ||
| It is about progress, Tony. | ||
| That's so well said. | ||
| And I'm so grateful for these fine Americans who stood here representing hundreds of millions of Americans in all the various endeavors. | ||
| And this bill, the one big, beautiful bill, is geared for those hardworking Americans. | ||
| It is going to help all boats rise. | ||
| And we are so excited to get this thing over the line. | ||
| And I'll give you more updates on that. | ||
| In the meantime, Tony and Paul and Sam and Sheriff Stewart, thank you again for your time this morning. | ||
|
President As Commander-In-Chief
00:07:10
|
||
| Let me zoom out. | ||
| We'll just talk about foreign affairs quickly and then we'll zoom back in on the big, beautiful bill. | ||
| I know the conflict in the Middle East is top of mind for everyone and it is for us as well. | ||
| Over the weekend, of course, President Trump fulfilled what was a bipartisan, long-standing national security priority by carrying out successful strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. | ||
| Everyone around the world applauded this expertly performed duty by our extraordinary unmatched military. | ||
| Some of them applauded loudly and openly and some of them quietly, but everybody except the evil regime in Iran knows this was the right thing to do. | ||
| It's important to remember who we're discussing here, okay? | ||
| Evil is the right word. | ||
| Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism on planet Earth. | ||
| The Iranian regime has been responsible for thousands of American deaths over the years and an untold number of maimings with roadside bombs all over the Middle East. | ||
| They have funded and propped up terror proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis. | ||
| And their stated goal is the death and destruction of America, and of course Israel. | ||
| That's why for decades presidents have talked tough on Iran. | ||
| They've talked tough. | ||
| President Clinton said, quote, I believe all the Western nations have an overriding interest in containing the threat posed by Iran, unquote. | ||
| President Obama, he said, I have stated that Iran will never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon, unquote. | ||
| President Biden, quote, we will not. | ||
| Let me say again, we will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. | ||
| But it was President Trump who did more than talk. | ||
| He acted. | ||
| And it was long overdue. | ||
| And his decisive action led to a weakened and vulnerable Iran that gives them no other choice than to come to the table, which they refused to do in good faith before. | ||
| The President secured a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, and despite the temporary disruption this morning, we believe that will hold. | ||
| Peace in the Middle East has never been closer within our grasp. | ||
| And that is something that we should all embrace and applaud. | ||
| And we were heartened to see even people on the other side of the aisle, right-thinking common sense folks, say that this was the right move. | ||
| The ceasefire is fragile, but it is very real. | ||
| I spoke to the President this morning right before Air Force One took off from the tarmac. | ||
| He said it over to the NATO meeting, as you all know. | ||
| And we talked about his frustration with the temporary disruption and the ceasefire overnight. | ||
| And he told me he had just spoken to Prime Minister Netanyahu and encouraged him not to retaliate in any heavy way. | ||
| And I think that request has been heeded. | ||
| I told the President that I would immediately echo the same sentiment to my counterpart over there and my good friend, Speaker Ohana and the Knesset. | ||
| I did that. | ||
| I believe that Israel and the United States are locked arm in arm on this and that that unified front and that common goal is what is going to maintain peace. | ||
| So I just want to say overall this is America first policy in action. | ||
| This is, as has been said here already this morning, the penultimate demonstration of peace through strength. | ||
| This is what it means. | ||
| But you've got to have a strong commander-in-chief to make sure that happens. | ||
| Regarding the presidential authority, now naturally, of course, naturally, we've got some Democrats here on Capitol Hill who they have an allergic, knee-jerk reaction to anything that President Trump does, no matter how noble and good. | ||
| And they, of course, are opposed to his latest work to make Americans safer and bring peace in the Middle East, if you can imagine that. | ||
| Some have even called for his impeachment over this. | ||
| It's absolutely outrageous. | ||
| It would be comical if it were not so serious and stupid. | ||
| Let me be clear and be as clear as possible. | ||
| The strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities were clearly within President Trump's Article II powers as Commander-in-Chief. | ||
| It shouldn't even be in dispute. | ||
| Allow me to put my constitutional law hat on for a moment, because that's what I used to do, because both the law and the precedent are important for everyone to understand here. | ||
| This may answer a lot of questions that you might ask this morning. | ||
| The framers of our Constitution never intended for the President to seek the approval of Congress every time he exercises his constitutional authority under Article II as Commander-in-Chief. | ||
| Alexander Hamilton argued in Federalist No. 70, just for one example, that, quote, energy in the executive is a leading character in the definition of good government. | ||
| It is essential to the protection of the community against foreign attacks, unquote. | ||
| This is why the framers did not explicitly set restrictions on the president when it comes to using military force. | ||
| They understood something very practical about our matchless legislative body here and our Constitution. | ||
| The way the Congress was set up, they knew it would be a deliberative body, and they knew that process by necessity would take time. | ||
| And in an emergent and imminent situation, time is not something we always have the luxury of. | ||
| And so they wanted, in moments of danger and conflict abroad, for one single hand of authority to have that authority to act decisively and effectively. | ||
| Now we're hearing some talk about the War Powers Resolution. | ||
| What is that exactly? | ||
| Congress passed that legislation in 1973 under President Richard Nixon. | ||
| It bars the use of armed forces in conflict beyond 60 days without congressional authorization or a formal declaration of war. | ||
| A 30-day withdrawal period follows thereafter under the statute. | ||
| It also requires that the President inform Congress within 48 hours of use of military force. | ||
| Obviously, President Trump did that. | ||
| Obviously, in the modern era with the 24-hour news cycle and social media, nothing goes by unnoticed. | ||
| This might have made some sense in 1973, but I'm not even sure it was constitutional, and I'll tell you about that as well. | ||
| Many respected constitutional experts argue that the War Powers Act is itself unconstitutional. | ||
| I'm persuaded by that argument. | ||
| They think it's a violation of the Article II powers of the Commander in Chief. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Nays are 213. | |
| The motion is not adopted. | ||
| Pursuant to Clause 8 of Rule 20, the Chair will postpone further proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered, or votes objected to under Clause 6 of Rule 20. | ||
| The House will resume proceedings on postponed questions at a later time. | ||
| For what purpose does the gentleman from Kentucky seek recognition? | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I move that the House suspend the rules and pass House Resolution 519 as amended. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The clerk will report the title of the resolution. | |
| House Resolution 519. | ||
| Resolution condemning the attacks on Minnesota lawmakers in Brooklyn Park in Champlain, Minnesota, and calling for unity in the rejection of political violence in Minnesota and across the United States. | ||
|
Horrific Act Against Democracy
00:15:23
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||
|
unidentified
|
Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Kentucky, Mr. Comer, and the gentleman from California, Mr. Garcia, each will control 20 minutes. | |
| The chair recognizes the gentleman from Kentucky. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I ask United's consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this measure. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Without objection. | |
| I yield myself such time as I may consume. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentleman is recognized. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| On June 14th, a horrific tragedy was inflicted on America and the state of Minnesota. | ||
| Early that morning, a deranged assassin ambushed State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, both of whom were shot multiple times at their home while bravely defending their daughter. | ||
| Hours later, the same assassin broke into the residence of Melissa Hortman and murdered her and her husband, Mark, in cold blood. | ||
| Melissa was the former 61st Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives. | ||
| These attacks were not random. | ||
| Recent evidence has revealed that they were part of a larger plot the assailant was planning that appeared to target public servants and their families across the state. | ||
| Such violence has no place in our country, especially political violence. | ||
| Today, my colleagues and I firmly condemn these attacks and all who seek to harm our elected officials, regardless of party or ideology. | ||
| In this country, we resolve our differences through spirited debate, the ballot box, and by working through an intentionally designed constitutional system left to us as our founding fathers' greatest legacy. | ||
| The victims of this horrible attack were not just politicians. | ||
| They were neighbors, parents, sons, and daughters. | ||
| They believed in this nation and their state enough to dedicate their lives to representing their constituents' interests and the pursuit of positive change. | ||
| I'm confident that my colleagues share this sentiment and can agree that no American, whether elected official or private citizen, should live in fear of being targeted for their beliefs, their vote, or their service. | ||
| I would also like to recognize the valiant effort of law enforcement in tracking down and capturing the suspect in this case. | ||
| Despite knowing the danger the alleged murderer possessed for 40 hours, officers across numerous departments and agencies worked tirelessly to locate and stop the killer before he could strike again. | ||
| Their courage and professionalism prevented further loss of life, and they deserve our deepest gratitude. | ||
| We stand with the people of Minnesota. | ||
| We condemn these horrific attacks and denounce political violence in all its forms as contrary to the American Constitution and our way of life. | ||
| In moments like these, we must all come together to reaffirm our commitment to protecting the peace and civility that define the America that I know and love. | ||
| I reserve the balance of my time. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentleman from Kentucky Reserves, gentleman from California is recognized. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I yield myself such time as they may consume. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentleman is recognized. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I want to thank first the entire Minnesota delegation, in particular Congresswoman Morrison, for introducing this important resolution. | ||
| This is obviously a very sad time across our country, and of course our hearts, our prayers go to the family and everyone impacted across the state. | ||
| Now, I know that the events of June 14th were shocking and heartbreaking. | ||
| Minnesota State House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman were assassinated. | ||
| Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were critically injured. | ||
| And I offer my love on behalf of this Congress and those across the country who have been impacted by these crimes, who have seen these crimes, and who all reject this political violence. | ||
| I want to take this time to thank the tireless work by state, federal, and local law enforcement to bring the perpetrator to justice. | ||
| And we should be clear. | ||
| Political violence against anyone is an attack on our democracy and all of us. | ||
| Now, we know that the shooter committed this terrible crime to terrorize and intimidate. | ||
| And he intended to spread his hate and violence toward many more public servants. | ||
| Now, the government had documents listing dozens of additional lawmakers targeted for assassination or for violence, including Congressman Krishna Morthy, who, of course, is a member of our oversight committee. | ||
| We've seen how members of Congress are facing more and more threats, but we cannot stand and we will not be silent. | ||
| It is important that we continue to push back against hate, fear, division, and misinformation in a bipartisan way. | ||
| Every elected official at every level must loudly call out and denounce these attacks, because acts of political violence like these are a fundamental threat to our democracy. | ||
| Today, we will come together in a bipartisan way to condemn the census attacks and to reject political violence. | ||
| I reserve the balance of my time. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentleman in Reserves, gentleman from Kentucky is recognized. | |
| Mr. Speaker, I yield three minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota, Mr. Stauber. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentleman is recognized for three minutes. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I rise today with a heavy heart to strongly condemn the recent attacks on Minnesota lawmakers and their families and denounce all forms of political violence. | ||
| Earlier this month, a deranged gunman shocked the state of Minnesota and this entire nation by murdering Speaker Amerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark and attempting to kill State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. | ||
| I am absolutely devastated by this terrifying act of violence. | ||
| While I didn't know Melissa Hortman personally, her reputation was that of a very dedicated public servant who cared deeply about our shared state and its peace people. | ||
| I heard equally wonderful things about Mark Hortman, especially his deep devotion to his family. | ||
| My heart aches for the Hortman's two children, now left without parents, along with all their loved ones. | ||
| At the same time, I continue to hold Senator Hoffman and his wife Yvette in my prayers as they begin the long and difficult road toward healing. | ||
| Their survival is nothing short of a miracle, and I thank God they remain with us today. | ||
| I'm also thankful to all of our brave law enforcement officers in Minnesota, along with our federal partners who were able to locate and capture the killer, ending his brief reign of terror on our state. | ||
| Without their quick response, there may have been many more victims. | ||
| Thanks to their dedication and professionalism, justice will now be delivered. | ||
| Make no mistake, this was not just an attack on the Hortman and Hoffman families. | ||
| This was an attack on the state of Minnesota and our shared ideals as Americans. | ||
| Political violence such as this threatens the very fabric of our constitutional republic and can never be ignored or met without condemnation. | ||
| I am personally alarmed by the growing number of threats and attacks on public officials across the political spectrum in recent years. | ||
| While we may have our differences, it is incumbent upon us all to ensure that disagreement never descends into violence. | ||
| Now more than ever, we must remember that we are all Americans and what unites us is far more powerful than anything that might divide us. | ||
| I am deeply grateful to Melissa Hortman, John Hoffman, and both of their families for everything they have contributed to our great state of Minnesota. | ||
| I think one of the most powerful ways we can honor them is by standing united as Americans against this senseless attack and against all forms of political violence. | ||
| I urge my colleagues to do so by supporting HRES 519. | ||
| Now I yield back the balance of my time. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Chairman yields back. | |
| Gentleman from Kentucky Reserves, gentleman from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I want to yield three minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota and the author of this resolution, Congresswoman Morrison. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentleladies recognized for three minutes. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Today, I rise with a heavy heart, but a deep resolve as we confront the assassination and attempted murders of multiple state legislators in Minnesota. | ||
| What we witnessed last weekend was an unspeakable act. | ||
| This is a scary time for our country, and it comes at a time of increasing political violence, assassination attempts, kidnapping plots, arson, insurrection. | ||
| As elected representatives for the people of the United States of America, we have to take responsibility for our roles in this moment. | ||
| As elected leaders, we play a prominent role in setting the tone, in creating the atmosphere, in shaping the narrative, in determining what becomes normalized. | ||
| And this cannot be normalized. | ||
| Our words, our posts, our responses, they all carry weight and have serious consequences. | ||
| This is our wake-up call. | ||
| The escalation and normalization of violent rhetoric and political violence have gone way too far. | ||
| And we as elected representatives have to take the lead and be the first to speak out and to start to model a better path forward. | ||
| Look, we can argue about who's to blame and which side is worse, but let's make this the moment where we unequivocally condemn and commit to ending violent rhetoric. | ||
| Full stop. | ||
| We have to make this horrific act of targeted political violence a watershed moment for our country. | ||
| We have to take a hard look at where we are, and we have to remember who is watching us. | ||
| Our children, the next generation of leaders, are looking to us to learn how to behave and how to treat each other. | ||
| That includes creating a world where people aren't scared by the hatred and division they see in their lives every day, creating a world where our children have kind, compassionate leaders to look up to and aspire to be. | ||
| Do we really want our children to live in a world where our elected leaders bully and lead with hatred and cruelty? | ||
| And remember, political violence isn't just an attack on legislators. | ||
| It's an attack on the American people. | ||
| It's an attack on our democracy. | ||
| Political violence threatens your right to be represented, your right to have your voices heard. | ||
| And it threatens who will be willing to run for office. | ||
| As someone who was a doctor for almost two decades before I got into politics, I'm passionate about recruiting people from different backgrounds to run because we need more diversity in who represents us. | ||
| Our democracy depends on good people running for office, and I'm deeply concerned that this will have a chilling effect if we don't stop it in its tracks. | ||
| So as we prepare to vote on this resolution, I come to my colleagues with a solemn plea. | ||
| Devastated by the loss of my friend and colleague, but more determined than ever with a deep love for the unrealized promise of our country, I implore my colleagues to not only vote in support of this resolution, but to commit together to live by these words every day, to stand up and speak out and safeguard our democracy. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentlelady yields back. | |
| Gentleman from California, Reserves. | ||
| Gentleman from Kentucky is recognized. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I yield one minute to the majority leader, the gentleman from Louisiana, Mr. Scalise. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The majority leader is recognized for one minute. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank my friend from Kentucky for yielding. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, a little over a week ago, America witnessed a horrific act of political violence that goes against everything the United States stands for. | ||
| On June 14th, a deranged murderer disguised himself as a police officer to gain entry into the home of Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman. | ||
| He shot the senator and his wife, Yvette, a combined total of 17 times as Yvette shielded her daughter, Hope, who then called 911. | ||
| Thankfully, Yvette Hoffman has been released from the hospital, while John remains in serious but stable condition, and he remains in our prayers. | ||
| The killer, still disguised as a law enforcement officer, then stopped at the homes of two other Minnesota lawmakers, one whom was fortunately not home, and the other who was perhaps saved by a timely law enforcement intervention. | ||
| He later arrived at the home of Minnesota State House Speaker Emerita, Melissa Hortman, and assassinated her and her husband, Mark Hortman. | ||
| Law enforcement then led a two-day manhunt before capturing the killer and finding a list of more than 45 lawmakers and potential targets. | ||
| As someone who's experienced political violence firsthand, this brings back a lot of emotions. | ||
| The man who shot me on the ball field that day also had a list of lawmakers. | ||
| I'm grateful for the actions of the brave law enforcement officers who ran towards the danger and saved lives on the ball field that day and saved, no doubt, many lives in Minnesota on that day, just a few days ago. | ||
| This was a methodically planned attack on the people's right to be governed by their duly elected representatives and should be universally condemned, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| America's differences must be resolved through debate and democracy, not through violence. | ||
| The resolution we're voting on today denounces these disturbing and anti-American attacks and mourns the tragic loss of Melissa and Mark Hortman. | ||
| HRES 519 by Ms. Morrison of Minnesota unequivocally condemns the horrific attacks on Minnesota lawmakers and their families in Brooklyn Park and Champlain, Minnesota and calls for the rejection of political violence in Minnesota and throughout the United States. | ||
|
Minnesota's Grief and Resolve
00:15:20
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||
| Political violence will never have a place in America. | ||
| Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle must unite to reject political violence in all forms across the country. | ||
| Melissa Hortman was a dedicated public servant, and we join Minnesota and the nation in honoring her life and the life of her husband, Mark. | ||
| We also pray for the speedy recovery of John and Yvent Hoffman and for peace and unity in the face of tragedy and division. | ||
| With that, I urge adoption, Mr. Speaker, and yield back the balance of my time. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentleman yields back. | |
| Gentleman from Kentucky, Reserves. | ||
| Gentleman from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I want to yield two minutes to the gentleman from Illinois, Congressman Christian Morthy. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentleman from Illinois is recognized for two minutes. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I rise today with a heavy heart and growing concern for the safety of our democracy. | ||
| On June 14th in Minnesota, Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were gunned down in their home. | ||
| That same night, State Senator John Huffman and his wife, Yvette, were shot and wounded in a separate attack. | ||
| These were not random acts of violence. | ||
| The shooter left notes with the names of other public officials, including my own name. | ||
| The Minnesota murders were a warning. | ||
| And if we are to respond meaningfully, we must confront three hard truths. | ||
| First, political violence is no longer an abstract threat. | ||
| It is real, it is here, and is escalating. | ||
| Public servants across this country face rising threats simply for doing their jobs. | ||
| Two, these attacks are about more than individuals. | ||
| They're destabilizing our institutions. | ||
| The only offense these Minnesota public officials committed or that Leader Scalise were committing were serving their communities. | ||
| When acts of violence are aimed at silencing civic participation, our entire democracy is at risk. | ||
| Third, we must meet this moment with unity and resolve. | ||
| We must reject the violent rhetoric and conspiracies that fuel this hatred. | ||
| We must defend civil dialogue. | ||
| And we must stand together as Republicans and Democrats to condemn political violence and, for that matter, violence of all kinds. | ||
| Just as an aside, I hope that the American people have a chance to watch this particular debate because I think that it really illustrates the unity and resolve that I think all of us must exhibit at all times. | ||
| Representative Hortman and Senator Huffman deserve more than our thoughts. | ||
| They deserve our commitment to ensuring that this never happens again. | ||
| Thank you, and I yield back. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Yields back. | |
| Gentleman from California Reserves. | ||
| The gentleman from Kentucky is recognized. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I yield three minutes to the gentlelady from Minnesota, Ms. Fishback. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentlelady from Minnesota is recognized for three minutes. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, Mr. Comer, for yielding me the time. | ||
| I rise in support of House Resolution 519. | ||
| The events of June 14th were truly horrifying. | ||
| Those events shocked Minnesota and they shocked the country. | ||
| And we mourn the loss of Minnesota Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. | ||
| And we pray for the swift recovery of my friend, Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. | ||
| I was honored to serve with both of them in the Minnesota legislature. | ||
| But we're still processing this senseless act. | ||
| And I stand with my colleagues today as we say there is no place for politically motivated violence in this country. | ||
| These victims committed themselves to public service and believed they were working to make their state a better place. | ||
| There is no scenario in which that dedication to public service should have cost them their lives. | ||
| To John and Yvette, we stand with you and your family as you continue to recover from the horrible attack. | ||
| And to friends and family of Mark and Melissa, I know you are proud of the legacy they left, and they have left a strong legacy for all of us. | ||
| And I hope you know the Minnesota community is here for you. | ||
| And finally, I want to thank the men and women of law enforcement who worked tirelessly, worked to apprehend this deranged killer and bring the episode to a close. | ||
| With that, I yield back, Mr. Speaker. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentlelady yields back. | |
| Gentleman from Kentucky Reserves, gentlemen from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota, Congresswoman McCollum. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentlelady from Minnesota is recognized for two minutes. | |
| Mr. Speaker, I rise in full support of this resolution, and I thank Congresswoman on behalf of the entire Minnesota delegation for bringing us together. | ||
| We must stand united to condemn the assassination of Minnesota Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark and the attempted murder of Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. | ||
| Political violence targeted these two great servants who exemplified the best of Minnesota values, hard work, respect, inclusion, and yes, caring for our neighbors. | ||
| Minnesotans are devastated by these heinous acts, and we have our communities feeling shock, grief, and even feeling distraught. | ||
| And we know that this whole nation has joined in mourning with us. | ||
| But this wasn't just an attack on our dedicated public servants and their families. | ||
| It was an attack on our system of government democracy. | ||
| Democracy embraces the civil exchange of ideas and the open debate of policy. | ||
| It is a commitment to disagree with one another while respecting the rule of law. | ||
| That's how democracy thrives. | ||
| Violent rhetoric, threats, and physical attacks driven by political ideology must not be tolerated by any of us if our democracy is to survive. | ||
| This resolution is an opportunity for us to speak with one voice to condemn the attacks on Minnesota's elected officials. | ||
| All Americans, and especially our leaders, must unequivocally denounce acts of political violence. | ||
| So I urge every member of this House to stand with Minnesotans, to stand with our nation, to stand with our democracy by voting for this resolution. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I yield back. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Gentlelady yields back. | |
| Gentleman from California Reserves, gentleman from Kentucky is recognized. | ||
| Yes, Mr. Speaker, I yield three minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota, Mr. Finstead. | ||
|
unidentified
|
The gentleman from Minnesota is recognized for three minutes. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, Chairman Comer, for yielding. | ||
| I rise today in support of House Resolution 519. | ||
| In the early morning hours of June 14th, many of us woke up to the horrifying news of a targeted political attack that took the lives of former Minnesota Speaker of the House, Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and which left State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette hospitalized with multiple gunshot wounds. | ||
| In the hours and the days following, the largest manhunt in our state's history ensued, with over 200 officers from local, state, and federal jurisdictions working together around the clock to bring the shooter to justice. | ||
| I want to thank the officers who conducted this successful manhunt and ensured the safety and security of Minnesota lawmakers in the ensuing hours. | ||
| I also want to express my personal gratitude to members of the New Allen Police Department and the Brown County Sheriff's Office, Sheriff Jason Seidel, who worked to ensure the safety of my family and I in the hours following the attack. | ||
| I had the honor of serving with Speaker Emerita Hortman for four years during my time in the Minnesota legislature. | ||
| I will forever cherish the conversations and friendship that I had with her then and throughout the 20 years since. | ||
| When I look back at my time serving alongside her, Melissa embodied the spirit of hardworking people, of the hardworking people of Minnesota. | ||
| She came from a blue-collar upbringing and had a work ethic that drove her to always seek out solutions rather than seeking out a spotlight for a political win. | ||
| Melissa was a principled public servant who led by example. | ||
| When tough decisions had to be made, she put her politics aside and she got the job done for Minnesotans. | ||
| As a lawmaker, Melissa brought her roll-up-the-sleeves problem-solving approach to almost every issue. | ||
| And along with it, she touched all of us with the witty humor that many of us will remember her for, including myself. | ||
| She was a very special person, and I can say without hesitation that our state was better served due to her leadership, and the halls of the Minnesota State Capitol will be a lot less bright without her. | ||
| Words cannot express the emotions all of us across Minnesota have experienced in the wake of this tragic event. | ||
| Devastation, fear, grief, outrage. | ||
| Whether we disagree on policy issues, politically targeted violence like this must never be tolerated. | ||
| My wife Jackie and I teach our kids that it's possible to respectfully disagree with others. | ||
| We have to do that same as a society. | ||
| We have to lead by example and put civility back in today's political discourse. | ||
| Political disagreement is healthy. | ||
| It's what our system of government was founded upon, and we have our fair share of that political disagreement in Minnesota, and we even have it here in the House chamber. | ||
| I was proud to join every member of the Minnesota delegation on both sides of the aisle to call out this act of hatred, and we will continue to do so together. | ||
| The gentleman is recognized for an additional minute. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| Over the past week, I've been reminding myself that hope, faith, and resiliency is the enemy of evil. | ||
| So, to my fellow Minnesotans, not just the Republicans, not just the Democrats, but to my fellow Minnesotans, hope, faith, and resiliency is the enemy of evil. | ||
| While one person's evil act shook us to our core, it's up to each and every one of us to be the good. | ||
| I hope that all of us take time to lean on each other, find opportunities to be more loving family members, a kinder friend, a better neighbor, because that is the good that overcomes evil. | ||
| My thoughts and prayers go out to the Hortman and Hoffman families during this time of tragedy. | ||
| I urge my colleagues to support this important resolution, and I yield back. | ||
| Gentleman yields back. | ||
| Gentleman from Kentucky Reserves, gentlemen from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I yield three minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota, Congressman Craig. | ||
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unidentified
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Gentleladies recognized for three minutes. | |
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I rise today to honor two incredible Minnesotans and friends who were taken from us too soon, Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman. | ||
| We lost Melissa and Mark two weekends ago in an unthinkable politically motivated attack that also threatened the lives of State Senator John Hoffman, his wife, Yvette, and their daughter Hope. | ||
| Like many Minnesotans, I've struggled to come to terms with this tragedy to make sense of it. | ||
| But I found comfort in community and in sharing stories of my friends, Melissa and Mark. | ||
| So today, I'd like to remember the Hortmans for the people that they were and the legacy that they will leave behind. | ||
| Anyone who knew Melissa and Mark knew that together they were a force for good. | ||
| Melissa was a dedicated public servant, and both she and her husband devoted their lives to improving the lives of Minnesotans. | ||
| Personally, Melissa and I shared a love of golden retrievers. | ||
| We often exchanged stories and photos of our beloveds. | ||
| She adored her golden retriever, Gilbert, and he adored her. | ||
| Professionally, I had the privilege of working with Melissa over the years and watching her excel as Speaker of the Minnesota House. | ||
| I'd always admired her work and her ability to work across the aisle, make tough decisions when she needed to. | ||
| She was a true leader and she led by example. | ||
| Recently, Melissa had to take a vote, a tough vote that she personally didn't agree with, but it was the best deal she could get. | ||
| In my last conversation with her, I told her that I was proud of her, proud of her leadership. | ||
| Standing here today, I'm so glad that I did. | ||
| It's still difficult to comprehend the violent attacks on the Hortmans and Hoffmans, but what I do know is that we got here in part because of our divisive rhetoric that we have allowed to seep into our politics and into our communities. | ||
| It will take our entire community coming together. | ||
| We must hold ourselves and each other accountable. | ||
| It's the only way forward, and it's how we honor the legacy of Melissa and Mark. | ||
| Thank you, and I yield the balance of my time. | ||
| Gentleman from California, Reserves. | ||
| Kentucky is recognized. | ||
| Reserve. | ||
| The Kentucky Reserves. | ||
| Gentleman from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I want to yield one minute to the gentlewoman from Minnesota, Congressman Omar. | ||
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unidentified
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The gentlewoman from Minnesota is recognized for one minute. | |
| Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart in support of H.R.E.S. 519. | ||
| What happened in my state of Minnesota was a painful reminder of the growing threats public servants face simply for doing their job. | ||
| Speaker, Melissa Hortman was a friend, a mentor, and a fierce advocate who dedicated her life to public service. | ||
| The assassination of Melissa and her husband, Mark, and the harm done to Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, is a tragedy that should shake all of us, regardless of party. | ||
| This resolution calls on us on both sides of the aisle to take that violence seriously. | ||
| Recently, we have seen acts of political violence minimized, joked about, and used as a talking point. | ||
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Amplifying Commitment
00:05:28
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| This has to stop. | ||
| This job is never supposed to come with a target on our backs. | ||
| Political violence has no place in our democracy. | ||
| And if we truly believe in the work that we are doing here, then we have to protect the people who serve. | ||
| I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, and I yield back. | ||
| The gentlewoman yields back. | ||
| The gentleman from California, Reserves. | ||
| The gentleman from Kentucky. | ||
| Reserve. | ||
| Reserves. | ||
| And gentleman from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I yield three minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois, Congressman Ramirez. | ||
| The gentlewoman from Illinois is recognized for three minutes. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 519, introduced by Congresswoman Kelly Morrison and the Minnesota delegation. | ||
| I join my colleagues in condemning the attack that took the lives of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark and wounded Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. | ||
| Let me say this loud and clear, as so many have said today. | ||
| There is no place in our democracy for political violence. | ||
| It violates our shared humanity. | ||
| The violence we saw in Minnesota is a consequence of those in power irresponsibly stoking division and fomenting hate against political opponents. | ||
| So I also rise today to amplify the resolution's call that we all reaffirm our commitment to a democracy where violent rhetoric and acts like this are not tolerated. | ||
| Their call is echoed in my resolution to honor the life of Wadea Fayumi, a six-year-old boy from Illinois, whose life was taken in an act of anti-Palestinian violence. | ||
| It is the duty of elected officials and the media to tell the truth without dehumanizing rhetoric when informing the public of factual information. | ||
| We know that dehumanizing rhetoric can fuel sentiments of hate that result in violence. | ||
| And each tragedy adds to a litany of evidence that our safety and that our security are interconnected. | ||
| Dehumanizing rhetoric makes us all less safe. | ||
| Whereas be a true social polls on Twitter or anywhere else, we all have a responsibility to denounce political violence in all its forms. | ||
| And it is our duty to denounce and will continue to reject all forms of hate-fueled violence from Plainfield, Illinois to Gaza to Israel to DC to Boulder to Minneapolis and everywhere in between. | ||
| It is our responsibility and I want to thank the sponsors for bringing this resolution. | ||
| With that, I yield back. | ||
| The gentleman yields back. | ||
| The gentleman from California reserves. | ||
| The gentleman from Kentucky is recognized. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers and am prepared to close. | ||
| The gentleman from Kentucky Reserves. | ||
| The gentleman from California is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| We can all agree that political violence should be condemned whenever it happens. | ||
| Public servants must be able to do their jobs and represent their constituents without fear. | ||
| It's good to hear this bipartisan support today. | ||
| Of course, our prayers and our thoughts are with everyone impacted, and I urge their adoption of the resolution, and I yield back the balance of the time. | ||
| Gentleman from California yields back. | ||
| The gentleman from Kentucky is recognized. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I join my House colleagues in offering my deepest condolences to the people of Minnesota. | ||
| I particularly want to extend my sympathies to my House colleagues representing the Minnesota delegation. | ||
| We mourn the loss of Melissa and Mark Hortman, remembering their lives and the lasting impact they had on the state they love so deeply. | ||
| We send warm wishes of recovery to John and Yvette Hoffman, who have displayed true courage through this nightmare. | ||
| My prayers are with the families and friends of the victims who have had their lives upended and forever altered by these heinous acts. | ||
| We will not bend to intimidation or fear, and we refuse to tolerate the actions of those who would seek to usurp the will of the people and their representatives, advancing their own twisted agendas through violence and bloodshed. | ||
| I encourage each of my colleagues to support this resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time. | ||
| Gentleman from Kentucky yields back. | ||
| The question is, will the House suspend the rules and agree to the House Resolution 519 as amended? | ||
| Those in favor say aye. | ||
| Those opposed, no. | ||
| In the opinion of the chair, two-thirds being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended. | ||
| The resolution is agreed to, and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. | ||
| For what purpose, gentlemen from California, seek recognition? | ||
| We're going to record a vote, please. | ||
| Is a gentleman requesting the yays and nays? | ||
| Yays and nays. | ||
| The yays and nays are requested. | ||
| All those in favor of taking the vote by yays and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. | ||
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Request for Recognition
00:13:58
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| A sufficient number having risen, the yays and nays are ordered. | ||
| Pursuant to Clause 8 of Rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. | ||
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unidentified
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Is the black text? | |
| Okay. | ||
| The chair will now entertain requests for one-minute speeches. | ||
| For what purpose the gentleman from Tennessee seek recognition? | ||
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unidentified
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Mr. Reginald, you got the idea of the president. | |
| Okay. | ||
| Government Gordon always says. | ||
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unidentified
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Okay. | |
| For what purpose does the gentleman seek? | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Gentleman from Tennessee seek recognition. | ||
| Revise and extend my remark. | ||
| Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I rise today to honor a very good friend of mine, and he really is just a dadgum good East Tennessean, Mr. Willis Roscoe Bowman, on his 90th birthday. | ||
| He's a lifelong resident of Bristol, Tennessee, and a lifelong entrepreneur. | ||
| If I had to guess, I think his proudest accomplishment is his family. | ||
| Mr. Bowman is married to his loving wife and an outstanding father. | ||
| He's a grandfather to nine grandchildren, and I know they keep him very busy. | ||
| He began his career for purchasing a small gas station, going on to own nine different domestic and foreign car dealerships across East Tennessee. | ||
| At the age of 90, he still continues to go into the office three to four times a week, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| And I think Congress could learn a lot from his work ethic and dedication to his community. | ||
| Roscoe is also a NASCAR fanatic and never missed a race at Bristol Motor Speedway from 1961 until 2019. | ||
| He even earned the coveted position of dropping the starting flag at a race. | ||
| Over the years, he has become a collector of classic cars, restoring many of them himself. | ||
| Friends, family, employees, and customers of Roscoe's will always tell you that he is one of the best men in all of East Tennessee, and I agree with that. | ||
| He is most well known for giving you his word and coming through every time, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| This is yet just another example of how members of Congress could learn a little of something from Roscoe. | ||
| Mr. Bowman, from here up here in Washington, D.C., I'd like to wish and thank you for your friendship and wish you the happiest 90th birthday. | ||
| And I'd like to thank you for your time and your commitment to the people of East Tennessee. | ||
| Thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
|
unidentified
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I yield the gentleman yields back. | |
| The gentleman from Tennessee seek recognition. | ||
| Press the House for one minute, revise and extend and invite the members, a few members of the Tennessee delegation that are here with me. | ||
| The gentleman is recognized for one minute. | ||
| Thank you, Tim. | ||
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unidentified
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With you first. | |
| Thank you. | ||
| No problem. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to appear here. | ||
| In Memphis, one of our great leaders and one of our great leaders in the state of Tennessee and the United States of America and the world, in fact, was Frederick W. Smith, Jr. | ||
| Fred Smith died this past weekend. | ||
| Sudden death. | ||
| He was 80 years old. | ||
| Fred Smith started a business called FedEx, the largest air cargo system in the world, and he started it with an idea that he came up with when he attended Yale University and made it a paper. | ||
| Paper didn't get a very good grade, but the people of the world judged it as a plus. | ||
| And everything about Fred Smith was a plus. | ||
| He was just a regular, decent human being and a good guy. | ||
| He was always available. | ||
| He never made you think he was a big titan of business or a leader in industry and in the world, but just somebody who was interested in what you had to talk to him about, and he'd offer his advice. | ||
| In Memphis, he had his hand in just about everything. | ||
| Our basketball arena that's made the city the home of an NBA team is FedEx Forum. | ||
| That's because of Fred Smith. | ||
| Our college football team plays in Liberty Stadium. | ||
| He's pledged $50 million to improve that stadium and bring it up to higher standards. | ||
| We've got a golf tournament that's the FedEx St. Jude Golf Classic. | ||
| He's got his hand in every good thing in Memphis, from education, zoos, to civil rights museum. | ||
| It's a big loss to Memphis. | ||
| It's a big loss to Tennessee, and it's a big loss to America. | ||
| I thank Mr. Desjardins and Mr. Burchett for joining me up here, and I'd like to ask everyone to stand for a moment of silence in memory of Frederick W. Smith, Jr. | ||
| A life well lived. | ||
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unidentified
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For what purpose does the gentleman from North Carolina seek recognition? | |
| Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to address the House for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. | ||
| Without objection, the gentleman is recognized. | ||
| Three years ago today, the Supreme Court made the courageous and correct decision to strike down Roe v. Wade. | ||
| But Mr. Speaker, when over a million abortions are still happening every year in our country, we cannot grow apathetic to the ongoing suffering of unborn children. | ||
| Our Constitution never was a pro-abortion document. | ||
| It was always intended to guarantee equal protection for all people, no matter how young or how small. | ||
| The good from the Dobbs decision is eclipsed by the rise in abortions nationwide following the decision, mostly due to chemical abortions through telehealth. | ||
| Congress must act with urgency. | ||
| My Tele Abortion Prevention Act takes a step in the right direction by ending the practice of male-order abortion that kills children and leaves mothers alone and helpless. | ||
| We must take the principles woven into the fabric of our country and ensure they are reflected in our laws. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I yield back. | ||
| Gentleman yields back. | ||
| For what purpose, gentlemen from Minnesota, seek recognition? | ||
| I ask for unanimous consent to address the House for one minute and I extend and revise my remarks. | ||
| The gentleman is recognized for one minute. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the late former Minnesota House of Representatives Speaker, Melissa Hortman. | ||
| From the start of her career fighting housing discrimination as a volunteer lawyer to leading the Minnesota House as Speaker, Melissa truly exemplified what it means to live a life of public service. | ||
| It was my honor to serve alongside her in the Minnesota legislature, where she showed me how to lead with passion and integrity. | ||
| I was heartbroken to learn that my dear friend and her husband Mark were assassinated in an act of senseless political violence. | ||
| There is absolutely no place in our communities for this kind of cruelty. | ||
| We must settle our differences with civility and grace. | ||
| We owe this promise to Melissa, Mark, and the Hoffmans, who also suffered at the hands of this violence and our future generations. | ||
| May Melissa's memory of unwavering dedication to all of Minnesota be remembered for years to come. | ||
| Thank you and I yield back. | ||
| Gentlewoman yields back. | ||
| For what purpose, gentlemen from California, seek recognition. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to address the House for one minute and to revise an extended remarks. | ||
| Without objection, the gentleman is recognized. | ||
| Today, I have a simple message for my colleagues in the U.S. Senate. | ||
| Do not mess with our public lands. | ||
| I hoped to defeat a provision originally included in the House reconciliation bill that would have provided for public land sales. | ||
| We got it removed. | ||
| But now, a similar provision has somehow re-emerged in the Senate. | ||
| I want to be very clear. | ||
| The inclusion of any such provision in the final version of the bill will imperil the entire reconciliation package. | ||
| Our beautiful public lands are not just national treasures. | ||
| They are deeply interwoven with our communities. | ||
| They are essential to the character of our region. | ||
| They provide jobs and economic activity. | ||
| They provide recreation and joy, and they're open to all. | ||
| And I will fight in every way I can to assure that they remain open to all and that the will of our local communities is not subordinated to decisions made in Washington, D.C. | ||
| I yield back. | ||
| The gentleman yields back. | ||
| The gentleman from Georgia, for what purpose do you seek recognition? | ||
| Without objection, the gentleman is recognized. | ||
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unidentified
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Augusta Radio host Austin Rhodes on the recent announcement that he will be inducted into the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame. | |
| For over 30 years, Austin has been a consistent and dependable voice as the host of the Austin Rhodes Show on WGAC, making it one of Georgia's longest-running weekday drive-time talk shows. | ||
| Nearly three years ago, I stood before this body to recognize Austin's 30th year anniversary in broadcasting, and it is my honor to stand here once again to mark yet another achievement in his long career. | ||
| During my time in Congress, I've had the pleasure of joining Austin's show on many occasions to discuss key issues impacting our nation and the CSRA. | ||
| I will always appreciate Austin's flexibility, willingness to have important conversations, and most of all, his ability to tell it like he sees it. | ||
| Austin, congratulations on this well-deserved honor. | ||
| I have no doubt that you will continue to be our afternoon voice on the airways for many years to come, and I yield back. | ||
| Yields back. | ||
| For what purpose? | ||
| Gentlewoman from Nevada seek recognition? | ||
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unidentified
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Ask unanimous consent to address on the bill. | |
| Without objection, the general woman is recognized. | ||
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unidentified
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All right. | |
| We're kind of stuck, I guess. | ||
| Well, thank you, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| I rise today to send a message to Senator Lee and his allies. | ||
| We are not going to let you use our treasured public lands as revenue raisers to pay for tax cuts for billionaires. | ||
| Now, we made it clear here in the House that selling off our public lands faced bipartisan opposition. | ||
| With the House version of the bill, I was pleased and proud to lead the effort to strike the provision to sell off public lands in my congressional district in southern Nevada without our consent. | ||
| Now, Senator Lee is trying to introduce a similar provision in the Senate version of the bill. | ||
| Now, Nevadans see this for what it is, and there's public outrage from outdoor enthusiasts and conservationists. | ||
| I'm pleased that the Senate parliamentarian with the Byrd rule has correctly ruled that this reckless provision has no business in a reconciliation bill. | ||
| These are our public lands. | ||
| Look at this map, and you can see what's at stake. | ||
| Now, it's not in the bill right now, but the fight is far from over. | ||
| And so we will continue to do that. | ||
| And this is the reason why, for future generations, I yield back. | ||
| Gentlewoman yields back. | ||
|
unidentified
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What purpose? | |
| The gentleman from North Dakota seek recognition. | ||
| I seek recognition to address the House for one minute. | ||
| Without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight 10 provisions in the House pass one big, beautiful bill. | ||
| Ten common sense reforms that too often get overlooked. | ||
| One, the bill modernizes our air traffic control system. | ||
| Two, it reforms student loan to redebts to reduce students' loan debt and debt burdens. | ||
| Three, it helps farmers by increasing reference prices and strengthening crop insurance. | ||
| Four, it ensures EV drivers pay their fair share for the roads because everyone who uses roads should help pay for them. | ||
| Five, it reopens federal lands for energy and mineral development, restoring American energy leadership. | ||
| Six, it unlocks spectrum for auctions so we can roll out faster 65G. | ||
| Seven, it restocks our military, delivering peace through strength. | ||
| Eight, it invests $10 billion in border security or more. | ||
| Nine, it eliminates the $200 federal tax on suppressors. | ||
| And 10, last but not least, it ends federal subsidies for wind and solar. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| I yield back. | ||
| Gentlewoman yields back. | ||
| Wait till he gets to this point. | ||
| Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3rd, 2025, the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. Smith, is recognized for 60 minutes as a designee of the majority leader. | ||
| The gentleman is recognized. | ||
| Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, 30 years ago today, the infamous holdings of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenting v. Casey were reversed by the Dobbs decision, brilliantly written by Justice Samuel Alito, who hails from my state and from my home county, joined by the majority of the U.S. Supreme Court, and they said this. | ||
|
Abortion Procedures and Extremism
00:05:49
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| The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion. | ||
| And they went on to return to the people and their elected representatives the authority to regulate or prohibit abortion. | ||
| Close quote. | ||
| A new national debate on abortion began three years ago. | ||
| And while there will be setbacks along the way, every human rights struggle has them. | ||
| I believe that growing numbers of Americans are finally recognizing the cheap sophistry, the mega-deception, and the culture of denial that devalues and disrespects unborn baby girls and unborn baby boys and trivializes the harm suffered by women. | ||
| The comprehensive 2025 nationwide Maris poll found that Americans are against taxpayer funding of abortion, both at home and overseas in our foreign aid, strongly supports pregnancy care centers, I mean very strongly supports them, and wants significant restrictions on abortion. | ||
| A large number of elected representatives have passed pro-life laws to protect unborn children, including the state of Texas. | ||
| And when a heartbeat can be detected at around six weeks in states like Florida, Georgia, Iowa, South Carolina, or when the child suffers excruciating physical pain, as we know they do from the abortion procedure, particularly as the child is being dismembered. | ||
| That's the procedure used to kill these children at about 12 to 15 weeks. | ||
| To date, 24 states have enacted pro-life laws to protect unborn children and women from the violence of abortion. | ||
| Meanwhile, I'm happy to say there are more than 2,700 pregnancy care centers throughout the United States, each and every one of them an oasis of love, compassion, empathy, respect, and care for both mothers and their precious children. | ||
| Abortion extremists in several states, on the other hand, including in my own state of New Jersey, have enacted anti-child laws that legally authorize killing unborn babies right up until the moment of birth and also forcing taxpayers to subsidize the violent deed. | ||
| Twice, the Democratic House-led House of Representatives passed extremist legislation that would have explicitly sanctioned abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy, again, right up until the moment of birth, and would have nullified even modest restrictions enacted over the past half century, including informed consent, waiting periods, and parental notification statutes. | ||
| Let me just point out to my colleagues, the so-called abortion pill, mifipristone, is baby poison. | ||
| It kills the unborn infant by starving the innocent child to death. | ||
| I do a lot of work on the Foreign Affairs Committee over the years on food security. | ||
| I've written two bills that passed the House called the Global Security Act, Global Food Security Act. | ||
| I'm all about, as we all are, mitigating hunger in our hometowns and across the world. | ||
| What does mifipristone do? | ||
| It starves the baby to death. | ||
| The little child can't get the nutrients he or she needs to survive. | ||
| This statement by Dr. Francis makes it clear it leads to starvation and eventual death to the fetal human being. | ||
| We also know now, however, that mifepristone is extremely, extremely dangerous to women as well. | ||
| And this is especially important because this dangerous drug is used to procure abortion 60% of the time, six out of ten abortions in the United States. | ||
| On April 28, 2015, the Ethics and Public Policy Center released a report entitled, The Abortion Pill Harms Women. | ||
| Insurance data reveals one in 10 patients experience a serious adverse event. | ||
| The key findings were that women who take this drug experience sepsis, infection, hemorrhaging, and other serious adverse events within about 45 days of taking it. | ||
| It was the largest study ever, known study of the abortion pill. | ||
| 28 times as many abortions as were included in all FDA to date, clinical trials combined. | ||
| So this is the mega study, and it found what was not found earlier, because in many cases, those trials were sham trials. | ||
| Let me also point out that it needs to be revisited. | ||
| We call on the FDA to look at what has been done to women because of this terrible, terrible abortion drug. | ||
| Let me just conclude before yielding to my very distinguished colleagues. | ||
| I believe that future generations of America will someday look back on us and wonder how and why a society that bragged about its commitment to human rights could have legally sanctioned and aggressively promoted abortion by child starvation or by dismemberment, beheading, chemical poisoning, and forced expulsion from the womb. | ||
| I call on my colleagues to defend life, and I also would point out in an information age, they will wonder, as I do now, how was it that so many were deceived into believing that somehow abortion is safe. | ||
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Thanking Pro-Life Champions
00:15:02
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| It's never safe for the baby, and it's certainly not safe for the mother as well. | ||
| The injustice of abortion violence need not be forever, and we stand united in trying to protect those innocent human beings. | ||
| We are joined now by our very distinguished Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, and I yield whatever time he seeks to use. | ||
| I thank you, my friend, for your many years in this arena, defending the sanctity of every human life. | ||
| And I rise this afternoon to mark this historic life-saving anniversary. | ||
| Three years ago today, the Supreme Court corrected an egregious and tragic error and affirmed an undeniable truth that was originally affirmed in our nation's birth certificate, the Declaration of Independence. | ||
| That truth is that every single person is made in the image of God and they are thus bestowed with inestimable dignity and value. | ||
| And our value is not related in any way to the color of our skin or what zip code we live in or what our talents are or what our hobbies are, our aptitudes. | ||
| It's all irrelevant because our value, our intrinsic value, is given to us by our Creator. | ||
| That's what the framers of this grand experiment in self-governance believed. | ||
| The Dobbs decision, which moved the question of regulating abortion to the people's elected representatives, reversed 50 years of inhumane social engineering and has saved hundreds of thousands of innocent lives in the process. | ||
| Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America estimates that post-Dobbs pro-life policies have now saved more than 200,000 lives annually. | ||
| That means at least 200,000 more babies every year are being given the blessing of life, the opportunity to be born. | ||
| How profound that is. | ||
| So on this very joyous life-saving anniversary, we remember the more than 63 million who were never given that opportunity to live. | ||
| And we vow to continue building a culture of life and advancing policies which protect the sanctity of every single human life. | ||
| My friend Chris Smith, again, I salute you as the chairman of our pro-life caucus and for all your work for so many decades in this arena. | ||
| And I thank you for hosting this special order hour this afternoon. | ||
| I yield back. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you. | |
| I want to thank our very distinguished speaker. | ||
| No one is more articulate, more passionate, more informed on the issues of life across the board than our speaker, and what a leader you are. | ||
| So I can't thank you enough, Speaker Johnson, for your leadership. | ||
| For a time such as this, you are here and you are doing a tremendous job. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| God bless you. | ||
| I would like to now yield to Mary Miller. | ||
| Mary, if you would. | ||
| Oh, somebody else needs to come first. | ||
| Okay. | ||
| Four minutes or such time as you may consume, and I thank you. | ||
| Thank you so much. | ||
| Congressman Smith, thank you so much for your decades of service to the pro-life movement. | ||
| June 24th, 2022 will forever be one of the greatest days in American history. | ||
| After 50 years of peacefully praying outside clinics and marching in Washington and our state capitals, Roe v. Wade was no more. | ||
| And while the Dobbs decision was a monumental victory, the fight for life has only just begun. | ||
| Many states have stepped up to the plate with over half of them enacting laws to protect unborn life. | ||
| However, blue states have doubled down on their murderous assault of the unborn. | ||
| Sadly, in my home state of Illinois, it has become one of the destination states in the Midwest for abortion. | ||
| In 2023, we recorded the most abortions ever in our state's history, and our radical governor proudly signed legislation allowing abortions through all nine months of pregnancy. | ||
| And since the previous administration rescinded safety regulations for chemical abortions, women are being harmed and our water supply is being severely contaminated. | ||
| Republicans are the party of life and we must protect both mom and baby. | ||
| That is why I've introduced legislation like H.R. 796, the Second Chance for Moms Act, which would require the FDA to place a warning label on chemical abortion drugs so that women can reverse a chemical abortion before it's too late. | ||
| I've also introduced H.R. 797, the Ultrasounds Saves Lives Act, which would mandate an ultrasound be performed before an abortion could take place. | ||
| Up to 90% of women seeking an abortion who see an ultrasound of their baby change their minds and choose life. | ||
| The Dobbs decision ended the greatest human rights violation of our time, but our work has just begun. | ||
| Republicans stand ready to support women facing crisis pregnancies, not just with words, but with actions. | ||
| Thank you again to Congressman Smith for commemorating this important anniversary, and I yield back. | ||
| I want to thank my good friend, Ms. Miller, for her leadership and for your legislation. | ||
| We've got to get that passed, and you've been a tremendous spokeswoman for years and to this day. | ||
| So thank you so very, very much. | ||
| I'd like to now yield to my good friend and colleague who serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee, Russ Fulcher from Idaho. | ||
| Such time as he makinson. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Madam Speaker and to the good chairman of the Pro-Life Caucus and my friend Chris Smith, thank you for holding the special order. | |
| You know, in the Declaration of Independence, our founding fathers made clear that our Creator endows every individual with certain unalienable rights, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. | ||
| This is a self-evident truth that for nearly 50 years our nation tragically denied to millions of unborn children. | ||
| However, thankfully, today marks the third anniversary of the Supreme Court's Dobbs v. Jackson Women Health Organization decision. | ||
| This ruling marked a historic overturn of Roe v. Wade and a renewal of power to elected state leaders. | ||
| It opened the floodgates not just for restored state power, but also for the voiceless who now have a chance at life. | ||
| Since arriving in D.C., I've supported numerous legislative initiatives that protect the sanctity of life. | ||
| Just this last year, I was proud to co-lead an amicus brief that supported Idaho in defending its pro-life law, the Defense of Life Act, against the Biden administration's efforts to preempt it with their wrongful reinterpretation of federal law. | ||
| Madam Speaker, protecting the unborn isn't just a legal issue, it's a moral one. | ||
| I'm honored to stand alongside my colleagues today to commemorate the anniversary of this momentous victory for life. | ||
| And I will continue to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. | ||
| And I urge my colleagues to do the same. | ||
| And I yield. | ||
| Thank you very much, Russ. | ||
| Again, for your leadership as well. | ||
| I mean, you are a walkpoint. | ||
| I'd like to now recognize a very good friend and a very powerful voice on so many issues, including defending the unborn. | ||
| And of course, that's Andy Biggs, a distinguished member of the Judiciary Committee. | ||
| Thank you, Representative Smith. | ||
| I thank you for yielding time to me today, but I also thank you for a lifetime of work that you have put in to save the lives of so many unborn children. | ||
| Today marks the third anniversary of one of the most consequential decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court in our nation's history, Dobbs versus Jackson Women's Health Organization. | ||
| That bill corrected a grave constitutional error and returned the power to protect life back to the states where it has always belonged. | ||
| The decision reached in Roe v. Wade was never grounded in sound law. | ||
| It was judicial activism masquerading as jurisprudence. | ||
| That activism resulted in the death of more than 60 million innocent lives. | ||
| That decision was a lie. | ||
| It was fabricated out of thin air by activist judges who thought they knew better than the Constitution and the people. | ||
| Dobbs gave that power back to the people, back to the states. | ||
| And since that ruling, we've seen states across the nation step up and declare what the left refused to admit, and that's human life begins at conception, and every child has the right to be born. | ||
| They want taxpayer-funded abortion up to and including the moment of birth. | ||
| Sadly, my own state has enshrined that in its own constitution. | ||
| But the Dobbs decision represents a triumph of constitutional originalism and the sanctity of life. | ||
| An incredible decision that has the potential to change the very trajectory of this nation. | ||
| It was the fruit of tireless prayer, relentless advocacy, and the courage of millions who refused to accept a culture of death. | ||
| And one of those great leaders sits next to me now, Representative Smith. | ||
| Life should not be a partisan issue. | ||
| And I know that we have a chance to actually rehabilitate this nation. | ||
| This is a key issue. | ||
| And the Dobbs decision provides us the opportunity to be the final fulcrum of change here. | ||
| Thank God for the Supreme Court. | ||
| Thank God for people like Chris Smith and the tireless millions of advocates over the years. | ||
| And I thank God for this country. | ||
| May he bless this country. | ||
| And I yield back. | ||
| I want to thank Andy Biggs for his leadership for so many, many years, for his articulate protection and defense of innocent human life, which, again, was on full display today. | ||
| Thank you so much, Andy. | ||
| Really appreciate it. | ||
| I'd like to now yield to Jefferson Shreve, a member of the Transportation Committee. | ||
| We serve together on the Foreign Affairs Committee, and such time as he may consume. | ||
|
unidentified
|
I thank the gentleman from New Jersey. | |
| Madam Speaker, it's an honor to follow some of our chamber's most distinguished colleagues, including Speaker Mike Johnson, on the anniversary of this historic day. | ||
| Three years ago today, June 24th, 2022, our Supreme Court issued its ruling in Dobbs versus Jackson. | ||
| Their decision overturned Roe v. Wade and restored the right of each state, including my home state of Indiana, to protect the lives of the unborn. | ||
| Today, we reaffirm the sanctity of human life, both mother and child. | ||
| I join my House colleagues in introducing legislation to designate June as life month. | ||
| I've prioritized this issue in my time in Congress, and I'll continue to advocate for every unborn child and offer compassionate care for expectant mothers. | ||
| Madam Speaker, I yield back. | ||
| Thank you very much for your strong statement. | ||
| It's really an honor to serve with you on the Foreign Affairs Committee because we do have many battles there as some try to push international funding for abortion. | ||
| So thank you so very much, I say to my friend and colleague. | ||
| We have a couple more speakers that will be joining us. | ||
| One will be the presiding chair right now, who's making her way down to the podium. | ||
| And I want to thank her for her leadership as well. | ||
| You know, she, Julie Fedorczik, the floor is yours. | ||
| And thank you. | ||
| Thank you, Congressman. | ||
| Appreciate your leadership on this and for you spearheading the special order today on this very important subject. | ||
| I rise today as a pro-life mom of three. | ||
| Today marks three years since the Supreme Court made history with the Dobbs decision. | ||
| This was a really important moment that returned the power to protect life back to the people through their elected representatives in each state. | ||
| That's where these decisions belong. | ||
| As we mark this anniversary, I am filled with hope. | ||
| Hope that we can continue building a culture where life is honored, women are supported, and families are strengthened. | ||
| It's my heartfelt belief that abortion should never be anyone's first or only option. | ||
| Every woman deserves to know that there is help, there is hope, and there is a path forward, a beautiful path forward that supports life. | ||
| The Dobbs decision was more than a legal victory. | ||
| It was a renewed call to answer the greatest human rights question of our time. | ||
| Every life, born and unborn, has value and dignity. | ||
| I was very touched two weeks ago when one of my constituents, Jay Reinke from Lutherans for Life, he lives in Rugby, North Dakota, visited my office right here in D.C. and he left me with a very simple, fun, but poignant reminder about the pro-life movement. | ||
| And it really sums it up very, very well and simply. | ||
| This is Horton from Horton Here's a Who. | ||
| Horton's main philosophy was this: a person's a person, no matter how small. | ||
| For America to be a perfect union, our laws must reflect that. | ||
| So let's keep standing together to build a country where no woman feels alone, no child is unwanted, and every life is seen as a gift. | ||
| Thank you, Congressman Smith, and I yield back. | ||
| Thank you so much, Julie. | ||
| Horton, here's a who. | ||
|
Pregnancy Care Centers
00:09:52
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| I love that. | ||
| A person is a person no matter how small. | ||
| And so thank you for reminding us of that. | ||
| That very, very profound truth. | ||
| You know, I just remind my colleagues: you know, we talk about pregnancy care centers. | ||
| I briefly mentioned them earlier. | ||
| You know, they are just areas where women find help during their unintended pregnancies and afterwards. | ||
| And I was speaking at a pregnancy care center fundraiser some years ago, and there were two women who got up and thanked the director of the center, who was out near an abortion clinic, just gently and very non-judgmentally saying, please reconsider. | ||
| We can help you. | ||
| The two women who spoke decided right there, they were right outside the abortion clinic and were going to abort their babies, and they reconsidered and they had their children. | ||
| They thanked with tears that director that she was there that day between her, both of them, and an irrefutable, unchangeable decision that would have ended the life of their child. | ||
| Later on in the program, two young girls got up, and they were teenagers, 12, 13, 14 years old. | ||
| They both stood next to the podium side by side, and they talked about sports, they talked about the value of life. | ||
| It was a very good speech. | ||
| But at the end, they turned to the director and said, thank you. | ||
| Had you not been outside of that clinic that day, 12, 13, 14 years ago, we would have been dead. | ||
| And that's the reality. | ||
| We're trying to save precious lives. | ||
| You know, birth is an event. | ||
| It's not the beginning of life. | ||
| It's an event that happens to each and every one of us. | ||
| Children, once born, are incredibly vulnerable. | ||
| You know, they need to be held, fed, loved. | ||
| And, you know, the idea that somehow before birth there's non-person there is absolutely illogical and absurd. | ||
| We need to love them both, love the women the way these wonderful pregnancy care center leaders do, and also love their baby and care for both. | ||
| That's what we need to be doing as a Congress, and we need to step up and do more to stop. | ||
| You know, Andy Biggs mentioned the over 60,000 babies who have died from abortions over the years. | ||
| You know, that number is staggering to think so many, numbing, so many children have lost their lives. | ||
| And one thing that my wife Marie and I do, because we met in the pro-life movement more than 50 years ago, we were both student activists in New Jersey at the College of New Jersey. | ||
| And we also work with so many of the outreach, both in the churches as well as in the secular space, with post-abortive women to love them too and tell them that there is a way forward. | ||
| The loss of that child is heartbreaking in the extreme, but there is a path forward. | ||
| There is reconciliation. | ||
| There is a way to find peace even after the fact. | ||
| And my wife and I know many women who have had abortions. | ||
| One woman, Alvida King, the niece of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, and she has said parenthetically in one of her speeches, how can the dream survive? | ||
| The dream she's talking about is her uncle, Martin Luther King, if we murder the children. | ||
| How can the dream survive? | ||
| Well, she's had two abortions, and she knows the reconciliation that God can provide. | ||
| And now she speaks out to other women to say that there is a way forward. | ||
| And I encourage post-devote Board of Women to know that there are many out there, many loving people, mostly women, who will reach out and help you towards that very difficult time. | ||
| So I can't thank you enough to my colleagues who have participated. | ||
| Oh, we're joined by my colleague, John McGuire, member of the Armed Services Committee, and a distinguished member of this body, John. | ||
|
unidentified
|
Thank you. | |
| Madam Speaker, life is a miracle and it must be protected. | ||
| I'm honored to be here today to commemorate the three-year anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. | ||
| The Dobbs ruling rightfully overturned Roe v. Wade and brought the right to decide abortion back to the states. | ||
| Abortion is not a constitutional right, nor is it health care. | ||
| This decision was a momentous victory for life. | ||
| However, our fight is not over until all women and unborn children are protected from the violence of abortion. | ||
| Over 66 million abortions have occurred in the United States since 1973. | ||
| These abortions have not only destroyed the miracle of life, but are dangerous to the health and well-being of women. | ||
| Recently, the Ethics and Public Policy Center released a report that one in ten women who take the chemical abortion pill, Mifiprestone, experience a serious adverse event, including sepsis, hemorrhage, or infection. | ||
| As elected representatives, we need to unite to support pregnant women and their unborn babies. | ||
| I will continue to fight to protect and support expectant mothers and be a voice for the voiceless and most vulnerable, the unborn. | ||
| Every life is a miracle, and again, it must be protected. | ||
| Thank you, Madam Speaker, and I yield. | ||
| Thank you very much. | ||
| I said, I'm a good friend and colleague. | ||
| Welcome to the House. | ||
| You're doing a great job. | ||
| So thank you. | ||
| I would again point out that we do have one final speaker on his way, Bob Under, Dr. Under, who is the new co-chair of the Pro-Life Caucus. | ||
| He'll be here momentarily. | ||
| So I will say, as we're awaiting his arrival, you know, life is the first human right. | ||
| If you don't have that, every other right, religion, speech, every assembly, falls. | ||
| And we're trying to, on our side, and we need friends on the Democrat side to join us, to say that the most fundamental of all human rights is the right to life. | ||
| And, you know, ultrasound has exploded any myth that somehow the child is not human and not alive. | ||
| You know, my wife and I have four children. | ||
| We had ultrasounds with them, and we have nine grandchildren. | ||
| And each of those grandchildren had a very, very significant ultrasound. | ||
| I mean, the modern ultrasound today, you know, the details that it depicts of that baby moving, sucking his or her thumb, just is, you see that, and you know you're a parent. | ||
| You're not going to become a parent. | ||
| You're not expected. | ||
| You know you're a parent because you've seen your child. | ||
| And the bonding begins even more earnestly after viewing that child on the ultrasound. | ||
| So we've got to, I think, do far more. | ||
| You know, we call on the president, and the president is pro-life, and I'm happy to say that. | ||
| He has done much by way of executive orders and also by reversing previous executive orders that were anti-life. | ||
| I could go through all of them. | ||
| I think we are on a better road now towards protecting the innocent and the most vulnerable. | ||
| But I just would ask that even my good friends, I have so many good friends on the Democrat side of the aisle, to reconsider. | ||
| There needs to be a reevaluation. | ||
| The surface appeal arguments that have prevailed for 50 years about abortion, the slogans that have prevailed with so many need to be pierced and exposed for what they are. | ||
| And one of them, as I said in my opening, about how safe abortion is to the mom. | ||
| And now we have this abortion pill and the new data that shows beyond any reasonable doubt almost 11% of the women who take that pill, the abortion pill, mefipistone, are suffering very serious, very serious consequences within 45 days. | ||
| That study needs to enlighten the federal, the FDA and others within our government to say the past trials were sham trials. | ||
| And let's not forget RU46, the abortion pill that was brought over by Bill Clinton, was done in a way that I still find appalling. | ||
| He sent his FDA commissioner Kessler to Rasal O'Clough, the company that was then marketing it, and said, please, please bring the abortion pill to the United States. | ||
| And the trials, like I said, were not honest. | ||
| And then President Obama, and he was doubled down by Biden, said, don't report adverse events when somebody takes this pill. | ||
| Don't report them. | ||
| You don't have to. | ||
| How do we know if any drug is effective or is healthy, does not pose a risk, if you don't report adverse events. | ||
| Name the drug. | ||
| There's an adverse way of saying, if there's an adverse event to say, this caused this. | ||
| And it causes, you know, sometimes a new black box warning. | ||
| We've seen that with a number of drugs over the years where they found out, oh my God, there's been a subsequent unanticipated consequence, deleterious effect to the user. | ||
| Let's get that out. | ||
| Not with Mifipristo. | ||
| The Biden administration said nothing, say nothing. | ||
| That has to change because this new study that was just released two months ago shatters any thought that somehow this was a safe drug for women. | ||
|
Natural Law and Abortion Rights
00:03:39
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| It is not. | ||
| It is very, very dangerous. | ||
| I'd like to now yield to Dr. Under, again, a new member of the Pro-Life Caucus. | ||
| He's a co-chair and serves on judiciary and workforce and transportation. | ||
| Doc. | ||
| Thank you, Chairman Smith. | ||
| I wanted to thank you for your leadership, and I am so excited to join you today as the newest co-chairman of the Pro-Life Caucus. | ||
| Today we celebrate the biggest victory for life in American history, the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson. | ||
| This court case held that the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion and returned the authority to regulate abortion to the American people and to their elected representatives. | ||
| Roe v. Wade wrongly held that the 14th Amendment's reference to liberty protects the right to abortion. | ||
| Planned Parenthood v. Casey subsequently upheld that argument, but Dobbs v. Jackson rightly rejected this specious argument. | ||
| The Constitution makes no explicit reference to the right to a right to an abortion. | ||
| Why is this so? | ||
| Well, some would claim that that's because it wasn't a relevant issue back in the 18th century when the Constitution was written. | ||
| But this is not true. | ||
| Abortion has been discussed historically since ancient times, documented as far back as 1075 BC in ancient Assyria. | ||
| The Hippocratic Oath condemned abortion in the 5th century BC. | ||
| So the founding fathers were well aware of the reality of abortion when they drafted the Constitution, and they did it guided by the principles of natural law, which according to Thomas Aquinas is understood by the light of right reason. | ||
| The precepts of natural law are written in our hearts. | ||
| We are naturally horrified by evil acts, murder being chief among them. | ||
| Since human law is based upon natural law, we can rightly deduce that intentional killing of the innocent has no place in a civilized society. | ||
| So as our founding fathers were drafting the Constitution, they never intended for the Constitution to be interpreted in such a manner as to directly contradict the natural law upon which our republic was founded. | ||
| Nevertheless, Roe v. Wade did exactly that. | ||
| Thank goodness we now have a Supreme Court that understands the founders' intent and the natural moral law. | ||
| One of the most important tasks we now have in a post-Roe world is the continuing fight for life at the federal level. | ||
| Dobbs v. Jackson did not simply, quote, kick back the issue of abortion to the states. | ||
| The wording, in the court's opinion, was very clear. | ||
| The authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives. | ||
| Members of Congress and senators are elected representatives. | ||
| Congress has the authority and the responsibility to legislate on this issue in certain areas. | ||
| There are many policies within our purview. | ||
| For instance, federal taxpayer dollars still flow to Planned Parenthood uninterrupted. | ||
|
Fetal Tissue Research Funding
00:04:17
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| According to the Charlotte Lozier Institute, between 2019 and 2024, Planned Parenthood was issued $66 million of direct funding through Title 10. | ||
| From 2019 to 2021, Planned Parenthood received $1.5 billion, yes, that's billion with a B, from Medicaid Chip and $3.3 million from Medicare. | ||
| There is no reason we cannot immediately turn off Planned Parenthood's government cash flow. | ||
| Thankfully, the One Big Beautiful Bill in its current form protects taxpayers from being forced to fund Planned Parenthood. | ||
| This provision must be preserved in the final bill, otherwise it will be very difficult for pro-life members to support the final package. | ||
| Another example of the use of federal dollars is the use of federal dollars on the grotesque experiments used on baby body parts funded by you, the taxpayer. | ||
| The National Institutes of Health spent $53 million on human fetal tissue research in 2023 and expects to spend $55 million in 2025. | ||
| This is a human rights abuse, and it has not even produced valuable research. | ||
| After nearly 100 years, no therapies have been discovered or developed that require aborted fetal tissue. | ||
| Meanwhile, ethical alternatives for research and treatment are available and effective. | ||
| Non-fetal cells were used to develop insulin for diabetes and herceptin for breast cancer. | ||
| Umbilical cord blood has treated thousands of people with blood disorders, and adult stem cells have saved over a million people worldwide. | ||
| There is no reason to continue funding aborted fetal tissue research. | ||
| That is why I introduced the Protecting Life and Integrity and Research Act of 2025, which blocks all federal funding for research involving human fetal tissue from an induced abortion. | ||
| Language to accomplish this policy priority was included in the fiscal year 2025 Labor Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill, and I look forward to seeing it approved and included in the 2026 bill. | ||
| Yet another issue is the rise of dangerous chemical abortions. | ||
| Chemical abortions comprise over half of all abortions performed in the United States, and new research shows that this regimen is very dangerous to American women. | ||
| More than one in 10 women who use chemical abortion pills experience serious adverse events, and the rate of serious adverse events is about 22 times higher than the rates stated by the FDA. | ||
| It is a blatant lie that taking mifaprostone is safer than Tylenol, as Planned Parenthood likes to say. | ||
| Congress must act to protect women by reinstating the FDA's original requirement that mifiprostone, the abortion pill, be dispensed in person under medical supervision, not by teleabortions. | ||
| Prescribing these pills to pregnant women without an in-person evaluation for ectopic pregnancy or other conditions should be considered medical malpractice, which indeed it is. | ||
| I look forward to working with my colleagues to address these issues. | ||
| Today we celebrate a milestone standing for life. | ||
| A new study from the Journal of the American Medical Association found that since Dobbs v. Jackson, 22,180 babies more have been born in states that enacted pro-life protection laws. | ||
| Praise God. | ||
| What a beautiful gift. | ||
| As we celebrate the third anniversary of Dobbs v. Jackson, let us take comfort in knowing that we have successfully advanced the cause of human dignity in the United States. | ||
|
2025 Congressional Directory
00:05:02
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| Let us continue to fight for life and never give up hope. | ||
| The cause of human life is a righteous one because all life is precious in the eyes of God. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
| I yield back. | ||
| Dr. Under, thank you very much for your tremendous work, including in the legislature before you came here. | ||
| You were the author of several important initiatives. | ||
| We're very grateful for that. | ||
| And as you are here, so thank you. | ||
| Really appreciate it. | ||
| And it's an honor to have you as a co-chair of our pro-life caucus. | ||
| It's a great honor. | ||
| Thank you. | ||
|
unidentified
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Thank you. | |
| I'd like to just thank my colleagues for their important statements today and just say that we will be tenacious in defense of life. | ||
| We will never quit. | ||
| We pray and hope for reconciliation in America when it comes to this and all other issues that so seriously divide us. | ||
| But I would now, as we conclude, ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the topic of this special order. | ||
| Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn. | ||
|
unidentified
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The question is on the motion to adjourn. | |
| Those in favor say aye. | ||
| Those opposed, no. | ||
| The ayes have it. | ||
| The motion is adopted. | ||
| Accordingly, the House stands adjourned until 10 a.m. tomorrow for morning hour debate. | ||
| Today in the House, lawmakers considered a resolution condemning the shootings on June 14th in Minnesota that killed Democratic State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband. | ||
| Members also approved a rule governing four bills, including a resolution condemning the Los Angeles immigration enforcement protests. | ||
| The rule also covers the 2026 Military Construction and VA spending bill, which will be debated tomorrow. | ||
| And during the session, Democratic Congressman Al Green introduced articles of impeachment against President Trump for ordering military strikes against Iran without prior congressional approval. | ||
| The House approved a GOP motion to table the Congressman's resolution. | ||
| Watch live coverage of the House when members return here on C-SPAN. | ||
| I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration and the Senate now proceed to SRES 259. | ||
|
unidentified
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The clerk will report. | |
| Senate Resolution 259, recognizing June 2nd, 2025, as the 39th anniversary of C-SPAN chronicling democracy in the Senate. | ||
| By a unanimous vote, the United States Senate passed a resolution honoring C-SPAN's four decades covering the Senate. | ||
| The resolution thanked cable and satellite operators for providing C-SPAN as a public service to the country. | ||
| C-SPAN does not receive one penny of taxpayer dollars, is funded primarily from satellite and cable providers. | ||
|
unidentified
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And called on all television providers, including streaming services, to deliver C-SPAN as well. | |
| We're at a different stage in our history, and a lot of people are seeing their news this way, so we need to expand it and make sure we're on all of those platforms, as well as the ones we already are on. | ||
| So thank you again to Senator Grassley for working with me to highlight C-SPAN's critical role. | ||
| And thanks to everyone who has had a hand in C-SPAN's success. | ||
|
unidentified
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| This compact, spiral-bound guide contains bio and contact information for every House and Senate member of the 119th Congress. | ||
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| Scan the code on the right or go to c-spanshop.org to order your copy today. | ||
| C-SPAN, democracy unfiltered. | ||
| We're funded by these television companies and more, including Comcast. | ||
| Oh, you think this is just a community center? | ||
| No, it's way more than that. | ||
| Comcast is partnering with a thousand community centers to create Wi-Fi-enabled lift zones so students from low-income families can get the tools they need to be ready for anything. | ||
| Comcast supports C-SPAN as a public service, along with these other television providers, giving you a front-row seat to democracy. | ||