Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives U.S. House Of Representatives 20240713

Of h. R. 1230, which the clerk will report the title. E clerk a bill to amend the age discrimination act and retaliation claims and for other purposes. The chair when the committee of the whole house rose amendment number 5 printed in house report offered by the gentlewoman from michigan had been disposed of. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, the Unfinished Business is request for recorded vote on amendment number printed in 1116790 on which further proceedings were postponed and the knows prevailed by voice vote. The clerk will redesignate the amendment. The clerk amendment number 3 offered by mr. Allen of georgia. The chair a recorded vote has been requested. Those in support of a recorded vote will rise and be counted. A sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. Members will record their votes by electronic device. This will be a 15minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the chair the yeas are 163 and the nays are 257. The amendment is not adopted. There being no further amendments. Under the rule, the committee rises. The chair the house has had under consideration and i report that the bill back to the house adopted in the committee of the whole. The speaker the chair of the committee of the whole house on the state of the union has had under consideration bill h. R. 120 and pursuant to House Resolution 790 reports the bill back to the house with further amendments adopted in the committee of the whole. Under the rule, a separate demanded on any amendment reported from the committee of the whole . If not, the chair will put them engrossed. The adoption of the amendment. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The yeas have it and the amendment is agreed to. The question is on the amendment and engrossment. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The yeas have it. The clerk a bill to amend the age discrimination and diplomat act of 1967 and other laws for federal employment discrimination and retaliation claims and for other purposes. The speaker pro tempore members, please carry your conversations off the floor. Rs the speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania rise . I have a motion to recommit at the desk. The speaker pro tempore is the gentleman opposed to the bill . I am. The clerk mr. Smucker moves to recommit the bill h. R. 120 to the committee on jation and labor with instructions to report the bill with the following amendments. At the end of the bill, add the following, section, rule of construction, nothing in this act shall be construed to alter the status of a truck driver if it is considered to be an independent contractor under federal law. The speaker pro tempore members, please carry your conversations off the floor. The the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Smucker this motion to recommit ensures that nothing in h. R. 1230 shall be construed to alter the status of a truck driver that is an independent contractor if the truck driver is considered to be an independent contractor under federal law. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman will hold for a second. The gentleman can proceed. Mr. Smucker democrats in congress and in state legislatures across the country e currently working to enact an jubness Legal Standard for determining employee status. Their standard would deprive millions of americans to work independently and start their own businesses. Seems like bad ideas start in california and the democrats desire to all but eliminating independent contracting is no exception. A california known as assembly fwill five is wreaking havoc from freelance journalism to ride sharing and many more. The result is heartwrenching stories from workers whose livelihoods have been turned upside down because democrats have put through a leftwing policy. Democrats have carved out but ruck drivers were not exempted blairing their truck horns and all. Fortunately for the Truck Drivers, a District Court has issued a temporary restraining order blocking a law. But it doesnt end there. Democrats right here in congress continue this assault on independent contractors. 215 House Democrats have cosponsored the pro act, legislation that would take californias law and make it federal law with no exemption for Truck Drivers or anyone else. Let me say this again. The democrats legislation pending in the house on which, y the way, majority leader wanted a vote would impose the independent contractor law on every business in america. Independent contracting today allows millions of families the opportunity to live their own american dream. I started my own career as an independent contractor operating my Drywall Company at the age of 17. The flexibility allowed me to grow the business, building a team of hundreds of employees over the course of 25 years. Independent Truck Drivers specifically are able to invest in their own careers and work for themselves on their own schedules while powering the American Economy across the country. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is correct. Member will hold off for a second. Members, can we give the speaker, the gentleman from pennsylvania, the courtesy, so e can finish his presentation . The gentleman from pennsylvania can proceed. Mr. Smucker according to the owneroperator independent drivers association, there are Owner Operator Truck Drivers and average net income in 2018 was well over 50,000, more than their professional driver counterparts. Last august, i participated in a ride with a constituent of mine o is owner of p. T. Transport and he hauls Lancaster Farm products and driving trucks since 1984 and shared with me that this career has allowed him to provide for his family while becoming a successful entrepreneur and allowed him and his family to achieve their own american dream. 2017, a Company Collected stories from drivers on why they loved trucking. One driver said, i knew a trucking job would become a passion and how this career would change my life. It has given me strength i never knew i had. One told San Francisco chronicle owning his own truck o pursue the american dream. Another one values the flexibility to attends his sons soccer games. Independent Truck Driving provides a steady, stable, rewarding and prosperous livelihood for thousands of american workers. I urge my colleagues to support this motion to recommit. A yes vote is a vote to support free enterprise. Nt let they be victims of a scheme right here in the u. S. Congress. Rather, vote yes to allow workers all across the country to prosper and live their own american dream. Thank you. Nd i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlewoman from pennsylvania seek recognition . I rise in opposition to this motion to recommit. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman is recognized. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I am not sure that my colleague and friend from pennsylvania has read the same bill that i did that we are voting on tonight. His bill, the protecting older working americans act has nothing to do with Truck Drivers and nothing to do with independent contractors. Ms. Wild this motion to recommit is nothing more than a distraction from the very important legislation that is embodied in this bill. This m. T. R. Has nothing to do with discrimination against Older Workers. Why do my friends and colleagues across the aisle want to hurt older working americans . His legislation, h. R. 1230, is drawn up to fix the damage that has been done by the Supreme Court decision in gross versus f. D. L. Which weakened age discrimination protection and since that decision was made, both the Supreme Court and lower courts have relied on it and applied the gross reasoning to other civil rights laws so it just doesnt hurt older working americans but other people who suffer from employment discrimination. The bill we are considering is the bare bones of what is needed to rectify that decision. This bill represents a bicameral effort that has been 10 years in the making. This amends our laws to allow for mixed motive claims meaning when a Employer Claims mixed motives for terminating an employee, that that will not be permitted. Age discrimination continues to be to be a significant barrier to job opportunities. When Older Workers lose their jobs, theyre more likely than others to join the ranks of longterm or permanently unemployed. Significantly, approximately 61 of Older Workers have either seen or experienced age discrimination that the workplace. In 2018, the eeoc received nearly 17,000 age discrimination complaints, accounting for more than 20 of all discrimination charges filed, and while most Older Workers say they have seen or experienced age discrimination, only 3 report having made a formal complaint. These trends have a profound impact on the Economic Security of Older Workers and their families. This law has nothing to do with truckers and nothing to do with independent contractors. This motion to recommit is a mockery of this important legislation that is designed to protect older working americans. I urge my colleagues to stand up for Older Workers and the protections that they need and deserve. With that, i yield to my chairman, mr. Scott. Mr. Scott the speaker pro tempore the gentleman from virginia is recognized. The gentleman has 1 1 2 minutes. Mr. Scott thank you, mr. Speaker. This is, as my colleague indicated, a distraction. This has nothing to do with Truck Drivers, were talking about discrimination against Older Workers. Were talking about victims of discrimination, not who gets to discriminate against them. We have a problem that Older Workers are facing discrimination and Everybody Knows it. National organizations representing senior citizens, advocacy groups, civil rights group, including aarp, have all written letters asking us to protech workers against discrimination. This were correcting the Supreme Court case and the gross decision which makes it very difficult if not impossible for Older Workers to prove their cases. We need to defeat this distraction, pass the bill to protect Older Workers against discrimination. Mr. Speaker, i hope we can defeat the motion an pass the bill. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman from pennsylvania yields back . Ms. Wild i yield back. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The previous question is ordered on the motion to recommit. The question is on the motion to recommit. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The noes have it. The gentleman from pennsylvania. Mr. Smucker recorded vote. The speaker pro tempore 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. Pursuant to clause 9 of rule 20, this is a fiveminute vote on the motion to recommit will be followed by a fiveminute vote on passage of the bill as ordered. That is a fiveminute vote. Members, fiveminute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore on this vote, the yeas are 196, the nays are 220, the motion is not adopted. The question is on the passage of the bill. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The gentlewoman from North Carolina. Ms. Foxx on that i request a recorded vote. The speaker pro tempore a recorded vote is requested. Those favoring a recorded vote will rise. A sufficient number having risen, ard recorded vote is ordered. Members will record their votes by electronic device. This is a fiveminute vote. Fiveminute vet. Vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore the yeas are 261 and nays are 155. The bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The speaker pro tempore the chair lays before the house a communication. The clerk the honorable, the speaker, house of representatives, madam, i am writing to submit my formal resignation as vice chair of the Economic Committee and an honor and i look forward to my new of the government oversight and reform. Carolyn b. Maloney, member of congress. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The resignation is accepted. The house will be in order. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent that when the house adjourns today it adjourns to meet at 9 00 a. M. Tomorrow. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The chair will entertain requests for oneminute speeches. For what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. He house will be in order. The gentleman is recognized. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to Honor National championship champion from my district, the brick city lions. It is the nickname of the northern new jersey Football Team and the lions beat the arizona far west jets 4434 to win the 2019 Pop Warner Division one Junior Varsity national championship. They should be proud of the work of his team. He founded the lions known as the newark Youth Athletic Foundation in 2012. In that short time, his team has exceeded. But the coach wants them to excel in the classroom as well. He has reading and math tutors and classes to all his players. He wants to build teams with character, confidence, and brotherhood. Clearly, he is exceeding and off the field deserves their recognition as well as on the field. The coach and his team represents the best of newark and they are a point of pride in our community. With that, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the ouse will be in order. Please take conversations off the floor. For what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. Without objection. The gentleman is recognized for one minute. The house will be in order, please. The gentleman is recognized. I rise today to honor the life and legacy of harold meeks a devoted family man who passed away. Mr. Speaker, the house is not in order. The speaker pro tempore the house will be in order, please. The gentleman is recognized. Mr. Mccarthy mr. Speaker, i rise today to honor of harold meek a devoted family man who passed away on december 24, 2019. He was more than a neighbor and considered him a family and his legacy will live on. He had a wonderful life with his wife and recently celebrated 48 years of marriage. He will be missed by his wife and family. He moved to bakersfield to work with his brother leo in the beginning of a career in the auto industry. Harold joined threeway chevrolet which was freeway motor group. The 3way group gained National Recognition and receiving multiple industryry wards. One of the greatest car dealers, he had seven consecutive titles as the number one retail volume chevrolet dealer in california and top retail chevy dealer. He was recognized by the Time Magazine as quality dealer award. True testament to his commitment to sales and service and he was involved in more than just 250 civic and charitable organizations, the American Cancer Society and make a wish foundation, just to name a few. A dedicated republican, he was active in local, state and National Politics and served on numerous president ial campaigns d managed campaigns for city councils. After he retired, he cheered his Oklahoma Sooner Football Team. Friday night dinners, afternoons with his granddaughter and harold truly embodied what it means to be a community leader. On behalf of californias 23rd Congressional District, we stepped our condolences to the meek family. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the entlewoman from maine seek recognition . Pingree i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. On january 22, 1973, the Supreme Court ruled 72 that women have the right to make their own Health Care Decisions and access abortion care. 47 years later, our country has seen significant progress since roe versus wade. 73 of americans support keeping roe versus wade the law of the land and they agree we cant go back and nearly 50 years, abortion is still under attack by extreme politicians. From 2011 to 2018, states across our country enacted 474 separate restrictions on abortion. Over16 trump campaigned on urning roe versus wade and has appointed onequarter and prohibit doctors from telling women about their legal right to access abortion and slashed access to funding. As we honor roe versus wade we must expand expansion to womens health. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlewoman from North Carolina seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to address the tragedy of our National Debt. Out of control spending is the single nonviolent threat to our nation. The federal deficit exceeded 1 trillion. 1 trillion bills stacked from the ground would reach 60,000 miles into space. The International Space station is at 200 miles and would reach this one quarter distance. The current debt is at 2 trillion which amounts to 70,000 per american and continues to compound year after year after year without any relief insight. It estimated that the National Debt will rise to 93 of g. D. P. In the next 10 years. That means for every 100 this nation makes, 93 would have to go towards servicing our debt. Colleagues, this is a National Tragedy and we are bankrupting our children and childrens childrens future. I urge my colleagues and associates to help us address real solutions. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, today i rise to take a stand against governor and boat of texas and end our Refugee Resettlement in my home state. This decision is going to welcome bigotry and contrary to the values we hold dear. Texas has led our nation in Refugee Resettlement and we have opened and welcomed refugees to contribute to the general common good of all. But now we have become the first state, the first state, i say that with shame to bar resettlement. This isnt what we stand for in texas and i urge the governor to look at the county which is the county that i live in and the decision they make to continue to take refugees and while it is up to day, this decision sets a dangerous precedent and i urge you to show the rest of the nation that texas stands for inclusion and let these churches, evangelical churches, black and white churches that will Work Together on these refugee programs and let them Work Together for the greater good of the country. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from mississippi seek recognition . I request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The people of iran are protesting the Iranian Regime that has suppressed the iranian people and denied the freedom that we as americans hold near and dear. They are protesting to hold the government of brutality against citizens and the world and marching in the streets for the iranians killed by the Islamic Revolutionary guard and marching in the streets for the deaths of 82 iranians, 63 canadians and four afghans, four britains and three germans when the Iranian Military destroyed the passenger plane upon which they were flying. They are marching in the streets against the Supreme Leader and the revolutionary guard. Make no mistake. These people are marching for their freedom and future of their country. President Ronald Reagan described our country as a bright shining city on a hill at served as a beekcon for freedomloving people. We must stand with the protestors that seek freedom from this brutal regime and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlewoman from virginia seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection. I served as five years in the virginia General Assembly and vote i cast in medicaid. As to expand more than 375,000 virginians now have coverage under medicaid. A winwin for everyone involved, for those who would otherwise go uncovered and and health itals care providers who often provide ervice to uninsured without compensation. Ms. Wexton a recent study has ven suggested that Medicaid Expansion has saved thousands overdoses. Medicaid expansion has saved lives and as weve seen in to the its thanks Affordable Care act. Hile my colleagues and i are working to protect the a. C. A. , donald trump and Congressional Republicans are in court working to strike down the a. C. A. With no plan or replacement. Ithout the a. C. A. , Medicaid Expansion, which covers 17 million americans, is in forardy, and so is coverage more than 130 million americans with preexisting conditions. With so much at stake, i urge my republican colleagues to end their attacks and in the meantime i will continue to fight back. And i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman recognition . Seek mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Today to aker, i rise recognize ms. Kerry mccoy who is 2019 honored with the special recognition for outstanding stewardship from preserve, arkansas. In 1975, kerry founded her uccessful business, arkansas flag and banner, with 400 in savings. Flags l and she sold doortodoor. In 1990, she expanded the purchasing the famed yet neglected historic taboran in little rock, arkansas. Hosted 1916, it legendary entertain ergs like king, iners like b. B. Etta james. Throughout the 1990s and early slowly and y meticulously renovated the hall. The 09, she founded nonprofit friends of the dreamland ballroom, to save and that had once ce been the centerpiece of the hall. Erry has since produced a documentary and published a book about it. I applaud kerry for the taboran halleserve and the dreamland ballroom and congratulate her on this special from preserve, arkansas. Thank you, mr. Speaker, and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for does the gentleman from north dakota seek recognition . Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. I rise to ng today congratulate the ndsu bison winning the for national championship. On january 11, ndsu defeated university 2820 in a thrilling game that came seconds. He final the bison quarterback racked up 166 yards on the ground during finished the season with 28 touchdowns and zero interceptions. Freshman ever to win the Walter Payton player of the year award and the jerry National Freshman of the year award. Bison safety James Hendricks on the goal pass line in the final seconds to ice a National Ensure championship. They finished the season 160, since a team to do so yale in 1884. During this unprecedented run, ndsu has won eight championships in nine years and compiled a 1288. Of they have lost only eight games in nine years. Defeated five schools, two of which ranked at the time of the game. Congratulations to the most dominant Football Program in the ountry and a special happy birthday to a bison fan jessica. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is minute. Ed for one speaker. You, mr. Today i rise to celebrate the ife of dr. Martin luther king jr. Dr. King lived the life dedicated to serving and being a oppressed across our nation. Mr. Spano his message of onviolence resonated with Many Americans during a tumultuous period of our history. When basic civil rights were denied to many based on the color of their skin. Rawing inspiration from his christian faith, dr. King believed his protests were the achieve weapon to freedom and equality and in the end he paid the ultimate price, courage over fear to overcome hatred and ignorance. Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate. Annot drive out only love can do that. Because of dr. Kings influence, ll americans can gather together to celebrate diversity and the growth of human rights each of us. I hope you all will join me in commemorating and remembering dr. Martin luther king jr. For leadership, his sacrifices, and his legacy. Back. D the speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is minute. Ed for one because of roe baby a were killing a minute. Mr. Speaker, another baby just lost its life. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition . For what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and remarks. Y the speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Today, i would walzak recognize john who is retiring after an impressive 37 years at the f. A. A. Working at the f. A. A. N 1982 as a student through stockton state college, now called stockton university. E learned three computer languages, ultra, jovial, and basic assembly language. Started working full time in 1984 as a Computer Programmer his way up. The ranks over the years to stars dtne test director hich eventually would become idqtt test director. He was also the application lead requirements. 2020. Etired on january 3, i thank you, john. Your Community Thanks you. Country ty and your thanks you for your service and done. Rk that youve congratulations. Our world is safer because of in the work that youve done. We are so unbelievably proud of our accomplishments, and may god bless you. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore are additional requests for oneminute speeches . Hearing none, under the speakers announced policy of , the gentlewoman michigan, ms. Tlaib, is recollected is recognized for designee of the majority leader. Ms. Tlaib thank you, mr. Cha mr. Speaker. To say i appreciate progressive the mine , in a district like where we are at the front lines of communities communities of suffering from issues around poverty, jobs, environment, education, disinvestment and so forth. Very, very i am very honored to be representing our caucus today special order. With that id like to yield to from new lleague jersey, Bonnie Watson coleman. Coleman i want to hank the gentlelady for yielding. I rise in support of the resolutions presented by my california, congresswoman lee and congressman khanna. They are long they are long overdue. The actions of this president over the last few weeks are an scalation of the reckless, arrogant, and ignorant Foreign Policy of this white house. If you can even call these hasty decisions a policy. Actions, lack of coherent strategy. He lax an understand he lacks understanding of history and the foresight to see the actions. Ces of his last week the house and the senate received briefings that failed to answer our questions basic facts behind the ecision to kill Major General qassem soleimani. They said they were so opposed actions than nts before they were briefed. In other words, the more we debacle, the this less faith anyone has in the white houses ability to make these decisions. Some of the questions asked by members of congress in that for ing went unanswered socalled security reasons. Yet, they were later addressed press rviews and conferences by members of the administration as they tried to president s lies and obfuscations. Why i will join democrats and hopefully any members of the house unwilling to watch us endless war and voting for these bills to limit the president s ability to in further aggression with iran and keep american way. S out of harms the president has spent the days ince his illadvised attacks blustering to reporters and on twitter, including threatening sites, a war tural crime which the only outcome ould be maiming and killing civilians. Just last week he ticked off a aggressions an which were the result of the deal. Each event cited only happened to pull out of the day. In is critical to curtailing any by her misguided action President Trump. The fact is the nation makes he fact is this action that hes taking makes americans less safe. Diplomats s our abroad with retribution. It threatens our military it onnel in the region, and threatens americans working in the region. Many, many years ago, senator said, and i rn quote, i am fed up to the ears dreaming of wars of young men to die in, closed quote. Fed up, too, and so are the American People. Thought the president thought this move would be celebrated by americans. Speak for myself and others who have messaged to me no more, mr. Trump. We dont want a world war. Killings. No more sending our daughters and sons into harms way. Appease the fragile egos of the men in the white house. I call on my colleagues to resolution of my colleagues, ms. Lee and mr. Clear and i send a message to the white house, your days of reckless misadventures americans is of over. I yield back. Ms. Tlaib thank you. Recognize myike to good colleague from rhode david cicilline. Mr. Cicilline i thank the gentlelady for yielding, and i thank the gentlelady for organizing this evenings special order hour on this important topic. Mr. Speaker, yesterday we held a hearing in the House Foreign Affairs committee on the administrations actions in iran. Over the past few weeks, the United States and iran have come to outright war than anytime in our history. Seriousnesspite the of the situation, secretary of tate mike pompeo refused to appear. The framers of the constitution declare war r to solely to the congress of the wanted to prevent a president from making the decision to take the country to war without the support of the American People. As we think about the president s decision, the only lenses we should view it is whether or not the americans are safer and strengthened American National security interests in the region and around the world. The fact that soleimani got what he deserved that it enhanced national security. I have been shocked by some of the arguments being put forth of my colleagues in support of the president s actions and members of taking our war powers responsibility seriously. Have we become so seriously that we no longer care about the checks and balances put in place to go protect our democracy. I heard members describe the idea of even holding a hearing on the administrations actions against iran as absurd. Idea as we as congress would sit back and allow this administration or any administration to take our country to the brink of war and just trust them despite conflicting explanations and complete lack of planning is absurd. What is absurd is the secretary of state agitating for Armed Conflict with iran and refusing thexplain himself after the president engaged. When you are in a tense military conflict, you should get up to congress to make your case. The secretary has somewhere to be yesterday. That is a shocking abrogation of this body to declare war. One would think if the secretary was so confident with his intelligence and so confident in his justification and so confident in his strategy he would be defending it to congress. He is making the rounds on television but failed to be held under oath. Perhaps that is something to do with the conflicting story coming out of the the justification against soleimani. We were told there was an imminent threat. Secretary pompeo couldnt say when or where that attack would occur and didnt have any evidence to support that conclusion. The president said soleimani was planning to attack four embassies. Administration was unaware. They have linchinged the killing of past and future attacks and while others have reported that the killing was first planned as long as seven months ago. The conflicting explanations coming out of this administration combined with their unwillingness leave us no choice that the president acted outside the war powers resolution and took unilateral action against an official without appropriate. They say none of this matters and he got what he deserves. Thats today. What about the next time. When the administration can launch a military strike that might lead to war and no information sharing and no legal justification and no oversight, who knows what they will do next. Every step that has been taken by the president and secretary state has exerted maximum pressure without a negotiated solution, Armed Conflict became more and more likely. There is no evidence that we are safer today than we were and in fact we know we are less safe. We stopped the training of iraqees and more american troops that have been sent to the region. We have suffered two attacks on bases that house american and allied forces. This notion that we are safer today is be lied by the facts. We are here today and doesnt appear that the administration has any strategy or plan for next steps other than the farfetched wish that they will be cowered that it will breach all of their demands and seems unlikely and doesnt have coherent planning. Forgive me if i put officials when they march us to war. This is necessary. I will not be responsible for sending the men and women of rhode island or any other state into harms way so the president imfeel like a big shot and disgusted by the secretarys absence and should appear before the committee as soon as possible to explain himself and the administrations position and their plan for preventing iran from obtaining a Nuclear Weapon and keeping americans safe. And with that, i thank the gentlelady for the time. Ms. Tlaib i now recognize my colleague from illinois. Ms. Schakowsky i thank you, congresswoman, for leading this conversation today. I am seeing the sum of my colleagues from the floor today that will remember the stories that i wanted to tell. This is the fall of 2002. And there was a vigorous debate going on whether or not we should be sending our troops to declare war on iraq, on iraq, who and take out Saddam Hussein and the story went that there were weapons of mass destruction. Oh, yes, they were in the north and south and west and east. They were there all right, we were told. And a vote was going to come up on the authorization for the use of military force, aumf in iraq. And there was one voice in particular that stood out and still stands out to me, a woman who was the ranking democrat on the intelligence committee, her name was nancy pelosi, who stood up in our meetings and said no, there is no intelligence to justify that we go to war in iraq. And a group of us got together, barbara lee, congresswoman barbara lee, the only member who voted because we were already in afghanistan, who voted against that war who put the out of iraq caucus and went doortodoor and asked our democratic colleagues in the house to say no to this war because it wasnt necessary. At the end of the day, somehow it was almost a unanimous vote, 60 of the democrats in the house of representatives voted gainst that war in iraq. That was over 17 years ago. We still have troops in iraq. We spent trillions, literally trillions of dollars and the loss of life on all sides, including our precious american soldiers that we sent. And most americans today agree that that war was a disaster and that we shouldnt have done it. And we learned a lesson. When it came time to talk about the threat that we knew was there of the Nuclear Weapons rogram in iran, we worked with president obama in a diplomatic way to pass the iran agreement that actually stopped iran from developing Nuclear Weapons that would threaten not only the United States and the region but the rest of the world, and it was working. And there were inspectors that would report to us and every month we got a report. And along comes donald trump who says this is a bad idea, this is a terrible agreement, and lo and behold, just a few weeks ago, he decided like a long time, not long ago, he decides all of a sudden thats an important thing or us to go after iran while soleimani, the general, whos part of the government, is in iraq. Not knowing crying over the death of soleimani. The question is, the United States safer now than it was . And the answer is a resounding no. Strong is why i am in support of the legislation by barbara lee that now says that will sunset that 2002 authorization for the use of military force in iraq. D the legislation by congressman khanna that will prohibit the use of military funds until and unless will not do it until and unless congress specifically authorizes to declareres war or ets see specifically authorizes it or declares war or such actions are undertaken consistent with the war powers resolution of 197. In other words, come to congress. Thats who we are. Thats our job. We are the ones who are supposed to say war or peace. The most important thing we could do to decide whether to send our young men or women into harms way to sacrifice their lives. So we have to exert our authority. We have to exert our authority right now. I stand in support of that legislation. We dont need and the American People dont want another endless war in iran or anywhere in the middle east. And it is time to say no to say that congress is going to make those decisions and to do it now. I yield back now in gratitude. Ms. Tlaib i thank you so much. I recognize my colleague from california, my mentor, the original squad member, which is what i like to call her. I appreciate her in the leadership role she plays in the progressive congressional caucus and suspend and stop all war efforts by our country and i appreciate her leadership. And i recognize her. Ms. Lee thank you, mr. Speaker. Let me thank my colleague, who is a bold and brilliant progressive leader. Thank you for organizing this special order and also for your leadership and hitting the ground running here in the house of representatives. Its been quite remarkable to work with you and to see how you understand the issues around peace and justice, and peace and justice go together. Thank you gn again. Let me thank congresswoman schakowsky for her speech for laying out the chronology in the historical record of how we got here and how we unfortunately were misled by the lies of the Bush Administration into this endless war and thank you for your leadership and friendship and staying the course. Because this has been 19 years now . We have to repeal this authorization. And let me just say to and pocan. Jayapal they have helped to make sure the public understands the issues we are dealing with as it deals with global peace and security. And i chair the task force for the progressive work force on global peace and security and we are very clear on why we must stop a possible catastrophic war with iran and reassert our constitutional duty over matters of war and peace. I invite my colleagues and to support and repeal the 2001 and 2002 authorizations for the use of military force and im pleased that the House Resolution has agreed the repeal in two weeks and i encourage members on both sides of the aisle to cosponsor that legislation. First with regard to the 2001 authorization. 19 years ago, Congress Passed it authorization aumf and was supposedly against afghanistan as it relates to the horrific events of 9 11. It was a blank check for endless wars. It was a 60ward authorization and totally openended and now we have a congress or at least a house where less than 25 of current members actually voted on that authorization which of course i adamantly opposed. This authorization gives my President Authority to wage war any time for any reason in perppute. Been used more than 40 times in 18 countries. I ask unanimous consent to insert the c. R. S. Report into record, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Ms. Lee thank you. Look at this ould map and see exactly where the usedauthorization has been o excuse me for military strikes and force. Two decades later, as outlined in the afghanistan papers, which read, published in the Washington Post i believe in december, the false justification and led to a 19year endless war. Washingt Washington Post afghanistan papers. Administration lied to us about the progress in afghanistan. Caused less war has countless deaths of Service Members, innocent civilians. Dollars. Trillions of its created repercussions hroughout the region and the world. Its truly concerning, and i urge my colleagues to read hrough the details of this report. Our own generals and ambassadors still do ow then and not know what our strategy was in hy we are still involved this war. We must ask ourselves, why are our service our Service Member into harms way . Ians civilians lives in flux . Why are ians civilians lives in flux . Why are we making our country less safe . It wasnt just in 2001 when we passed an openended authorization. In 2002, i stood with my colleagues to urge us not to rush to war in iraq based on intelligence. Mostly, weapons of mass destruction and to vote against aumf. 02 i offered then an amendment to that would zation have prevented this war by inspectors go the o verify that there were weapons of mass destruction before military action. Seemed reasonable. At least we should have had the to and the information justify the use of force. But, of course, my amendment received, i believe, it was 72 votes. Us. E on if it had passed, it would have the lie that the war was based on. There were no weapons of mass destruction in iraq. Repeal that to outdated authorization. Here, as ive stood here so many times to say that not want an people do another catastrophic war of choice in the middle east. Make no mistake, the dangerous and reckless actions taken by trump have brought us to the brink of an allout war with iran. Day one, trump and his war mongering administration have closer to war with iran. They have completely neglected every turn. Pompeo is the secretary of state and should be our cheap diplomat. We see our chief diplomat promoting the use of in the middle east. The effective and successful iran nuclear deal, jcpoa, once again, his administration has made us less safe and has allowed iran to move forward to begin to look at how to develop a Nuclear Weapon. Outrageous when we have verified the fact that they had stopped this. Weve also, unfortunately, increased troop presence in the middle east. Promoted a dangerous and maximum Pressure Campaign with increasing in increasing economic sanctions. His administration is giving the congress and the American People conflicting and contradictory information. E were contradictory information. We were told the president authorized the assassination of general soleimani due to an imminent threat as permitted by act. Ar powers act. Now secretary of defense esper said he did not see an imminent threat. Unfortunately, they cant even keep up with their lies. Now more than ever Congress Needs to exercise our constitutional responsibility to these endless wars. Thats why im proud to have support of eek in congresswoman slotkins war powers resolution to limit the residents military action regarding iran and prevent this risis from spiraling out of control. Im also pleased that my bipartisan bill, h. R. 2456, repeal the 2002 authorization. Thats going for taken up in two weeks. The administration has falsely justify hat they could the use of force against iran by conducting assassinations and in iraq. Doesnt make any sense. 2002 ndment to repeal the aumf was included in the 2020 ndaa, fiscal National Defense authorization bipartisan ed on a basis, but it was stripped by bill icans from the final and now, unfortunately, we know hy senator mcconnell and the Trump Administration took that out of the ndaa. Strategy now their as it relates to that and what happened in iraq. When Congress Passed the 2002 aumf before the invasion of many of us did not support it. It was intended, again, to perceived threat by excuse me posed by it related to as weapons of mass destruction. H. Military deployments and and operations and operations carried out dubbed Operation Iraqi freedom. Do you remember that . Officially includconcluded in 2011. More. Almost after 18 years after the resolutions passage, we still have this authorization on the and that even the has been used in any Current Operations and it shouldnt be used. Up wo weeks, we will take congressman conyers bill to being used ds from war absent explicit congressional authorization. We should do our jobs. We have been known for years there is no military east and n the middle we need to return to a diplomatic strategy with our allies. President s w this irrational decisionmaking to drag us into an unnecessary and in the middle r east. National otect our security, our brave troops, our allies. Eople in the region, iraqis, in es iranians, everyone harms way, and we must protect the American People. O we ask the question each and every day now, are we safer or ess safe than before this assassination and military strike . And i suggest that we are less and we need to repeal the force. Thorization to use we need to pass congressman alsoas resolution, and we need to look at a strategy and Administration Come to congress if in fact they intend to use force anywhere in world. Thank you, again, congresswoman tlaib, for your leadership and for this special order. Ms. Tlaib thank you so much. Colleagued to my good oregon. R. Blumenauer i appreciate the gentlewomans courtesy in permitting me to speak on this and bringing us together. Ive enjoyed listening to my memory es walk us down lane. Barbara lee, jan schakowsky, painful memories that states we were here when the United States made foreign e biggest olicy blunder policy blunder in our history. Costing hundreds of thousands of lives in the middle east, not just thousands of americans. Cost trillions of dollars. Every day intching by ica the price being paid men and women who come back with visible and those that arent. Limbs, lost pportunities, and troubled families. A ee days ago, there was quotation describing what was on with boeings design of the 737 max where one of their engineers said, it was designed and supervised by monkeys. Look at hat sadly, we the clown act going through now, trying to sort out a rationale rash act that has in safe. Eft us less tapping ump campaigned into the antiwar sentiment and endless to be against wars. Have been d to have been against the war in iraq. Of course, an examination of his record finds out, like most things, hes on both sides of that question. A step that ken way again. Harms beirut tragedy where there was the largest loss since world war ii in a single day. 1983, 241 marines car bombing inat the barracks in beirut. Preceded by what ome at this point would, i think, fairly assess, reckless action on behalf of the united in terms of heavy positions hezbollah n in lebanon. Things that we could have done many times before but cooler prevailed because of some backlash, and l that was indeed a serious backlash and we ended up not the loss of marine lives. E had to withdraw and further unsettle that troubled area of the country. Seen now is ve with ith one reckless act the execution, the assassination is eneral soleimani omething that we could have done. Prior president s knew his location. Assassinated e him, and they certainly had no for a truly reprehensible human being, but needed to hat they exercise restraint because the grave. Ences could be the one act of assassination has fascinating to watch because what weve seen now is iraqis in their have disinvited us, told us to leave. Weve watched in iran where just weeks before there were violent were put ions that down by that repressive regime against their own people. Demonstrating at great personal peril as the reform were bubbling up. Wasnt it interesting . Immediately after that the united n by states in iraq, not only did it iraqis wanting us to leave, but it at least united the iranian people against us. The tragedy of shooting civilian airliner, which was mistaken for an american have been would that has generated more towards the regime and it was their own ineptness that did that. No thanks to this administration. We had a series of briefings finally settled to give information to some of the committees. Under no im illusion they would be detailed, but at least they would have but through the motions, they have been canceled, a series of them, with no good after they had been scheduled and people were ooking forward to that conversation. Perhaps it is because this administration cant get its act together, cant get its stories straight. Days, we have watched late night comedians use film clips of the secretary of the secretary of state, disassembling, tripping over themselves in not but tured syntax contradicting what in fact was their rationale, why, when, and where. It makes for good comedy but unfortunately this is serious. Were talking about a very fragile state in the middle east. I was in the white house being riefed by secretary of state conde rice and the head of the c. I. A. Telling us about an imminent danger then. But at least we had white house briefings. At least they went through the pretext. They were wrong and they didnt persuade me or a number of my colleagues. Some of whom youve heard from tonight who voted against the authorization, voted against their reckless efforts. Weve seen this movie before. I hope it doesnt spiral out of control again. It is important, mr. Speaker, that americans understand the stakes that are involved. It is important for congress to finally reassert itself. I think knowing what we know now, those of us who oppose the iraq war would have been overwhelmingly supported and we would have rejected it. But weve had the benefit of history to be able to hopefully learn from our mistakes. We have legislation coming forward when we return to washington in two weeks, h. R. 5543, the no war against iran ct, sponsored by representative khanna. A number of us are original cosponsors. Agitating for this moving forward. It would prevent any funds from being used for military force against iran unless legislation is passed to specifically authorize such military action. And clarify that congress has not already authorized the use of force against iran. Specifically indicating those 2001 and 2002 aumfs, do not authorize war with iran aumfs do not authorize war with iran. We need to pass that. The bills text matches an amendment that passed on the just floor with 251 votes last summer. And i would hope that we would find members of the house in both parties who voted for it last summer to add their voice and urge their republican colleagues in the senate to join us, to permit a vote. We have h. R. 2456, to repeal the authorization for the use of military force against iraq, the resolution of 2002. Led by congresswoman barbara lee, who spoke so eloquently here a few moments ago. And again, im proud to cosponsor and support it. It would eliminate the authorization for the use of force against the Iraq Resolution of 2002. And, again, this matches bipartisan amendment passed in summer with 242 votes the house. These are simple, commonsense, bipartisan, and its time for us to enact them into law. These were stripped out in the ocess of the budget, the republicans in the senate and the administration would not go along with it. But its time, especially given the reckless acts of this administration recently, to go back, revisit, and approve each of these elements when we are given an opportunity on the floor of the house. You know, im absolutely convinced, based on conversations ive had with present its friends with mine friends of mine, wellmeaning members of congress at the time, who voted for those that authorization, who voted for the war, who felt that that was one of the worst votes they ever cast. We have an opportunity to unwind some of that now when we come back, approving those two pieces of legislation. I deeply appreciate my colleague organizing this conversation tonight. For some people, it may seem like its beating a dead horse. I think not. These are lessons that we learn too slowly. These are lessons that we have id for in paid for in blood, in treasure, in upset in our communities, in pain and suffering in the United States and around the world and i hope that she will continue in her effort, being such a strong voice for peace and rationality. Because we have to continue to amplify this message for the American People. And i thank her for, again, for allowing me to participate in his conversation this evening. Ms. Tlaib thank you so much. Your incredible leadership is a blessing here. Thank you very, very much. This administrations rogue attempt to start a war with iran has endangered countless lives around the world. We are farther away from global peace and bringing our troops home. Just as the wars in iraq and afghanistan have been disastrous, resulting in deaths of millions of people and costing trillions of dollars, a war with iran and iraqi shia militias would destabilize the region and cause untold human suffering. Congress must act swiftly to reclaim our authority over declarations of war and uphold the will of the American People who loudly say, no war with iran. Our residents want us focused on ensuring everyone in america has the opportunity to thrive. Trillions of dollars have been spent on death and destruction instead of on education and health care that communities like michigans 13th district strong so desperately need. Instead, we have wars now that have become Political Campaign moves. I represent the third poorest Congressional District in the country. My residents dont want more endless wars in the middle east. They want good jobs, Affordable Health care and good schools for their children. We must reclaim our government from those who push for war and we must dismantle the military Industrial Complex once and for all. From day one, this administration has antagonized iran, tearing up the successful nuclear deal, imposing crippling sanctions that hurt everyday people a lot more than they hurt the iran leadership. Our Foreign Policy has been driven by war mongers obsessed with regime change. Despite a long and bloody american track record of failed regime changes across the globe. Fueled by military Industrial Complex that demands new targets for its weapons, we have roamed from continent to continent, destabilizing governments and learning no lessons. Weve made it actually so much worse. The American People have seen what happens when we in Congress Fail to live up to our duty as their representatives. When we dont ask the tough questions of those hungry for war, our soldiers, our men and women, our are sent to fight and die in iraq for weapons of mass destruction that doesnt exist. Families from vietnam to libya are torn apart by bombs and bullets. And children across Southeast Asia are born without arms and legs because weapons like agent orange poison innocent civilians to this day. Let us finally, mercifully learn our lesson now. We must solve our differences with diplomacy, not missiles. No war with iran, not now, not ever. We live in a country where endless wars have been normalized, but its not normal. It shouldnt be normal. When we demand a debtfree college education, or health care for all, the establishment, folks in this chamber ask, how much will it cost . And who will pay for it . However, we throw billions of dollars away on broken weapons systems. We spend trillions on sending our armed forces to die in rich peoples wars. But when we demand basic dignity and opportunity to thrive, thats when the establishment starts pretending to care about deficits and debt. Were awake to this game. And were not playing it anymore. We must dismantle our war economy and reinvest in the peoples economy. Last weeks vote on the war powers resolution is a great First Step Towards reining in the war machine, but we must go further. We need to pass representative lees bill to repeal the 2002 authorization of military force. Which this administration is pretending authorizes their military maneuvers and we need to pass representative khannas bill to prohibit military spending on a war with iran more now than ever before another attack is ordered. We must keep up the pressure and ask those tough questions and keep up the fight for the American People who are still to this day saying, stop lying to us before you go to war. Stop using our men and women as campaign moves rather than trying to keep our nation safe. We can stop this march to war, but its going to take all of us and take courage this in in this chamber. And i thank my good colleagues from the progressive caucus for their amazing incredible currently to stand up and tell the truth, that is sometimes lacking in this chamber. We must do that. Sometimes do that. Sometimes staying silent and not asking those tough questions is the same as lying. I yield back the balance of my time and i again thank the 13th district in their faith and support of the work that im doing in this chamber. Thank you so much. The speaker pro tempore the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. Members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the president. And to address their remarks to the chair. Under the speakers announced policy of january 3, 2019, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. Smith, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. Mr. Smith thank you very much, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, next week mr. Speaker, next week, tens of thousands of women and men from around the country will march for life. Making clear to the country and to the world that women and unborn babies deserve the utmost respect, love and protection from the violence of abortion. Sadly, mr. Speaker, since 1973, over 61 million unborn babies have been killed by either dismemberment, a procedure where the child is decapitated and torn apart, arms, legs and torso, or by chemical poisoning. The loss of childrens lives in america is staggering, a death toll that equates with the entire population of italy. It is my very distinct honor to yield to congressman jim banks who has been a leader in defending the innocent and most vulnerable. Mr. Banks i thank the gentleman for yielding. And for his tireless efforts on behalf of the unborn. Mr. Speaker, although the ruling in roe v. Wade significantly alters the fabric of our nation, hoosiers will never stop marching in defense of the fundamental right to life. In my corner of the state of the indiana and the Northeast Corner of the state, we have one of the most active and robust prolife organizations in the country, the allen county right to loif. Life. Mr. Speaker, it works every day to advance the cause of life at our state house in indianapolis , in the courts and in our own community. And im excited to share today that they will soon be incorporating the counties of adams county, dekalb county, degrange and wells counties to join forces under the name right to life of northeast indiana. Indiana is now considered the sixth most prolife state in the country. The remarkable progress in indiana over these last four decades would not have been possible without the steadfast support of this organization and prolife champions like kathy humbarger. Each year the allen county right to life leads an annual bus trip to washington for the National March for life. And this year they will be descending on our nations pital with a record breaking 650 prolife students and advocates from northeast indiana. And i could not be prouder. Mr. Speaker, this Incredible Organization is also expecting a recordbreaking 2,500 hoosiers at the 2020 northeast indiana marv to march for life in fort wayne this coming saturday. And ill be marching alongside those 2,500 hoosiers back home in fort wayne to honor those of whom never had the chance to march for themselves. I believe that all life is sacred and i ask that all americans, whether you are in wherever you are in the country, to join me in marching to reaffirm this principle. Thank you, mr. Speaker. With that, i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you for your very eloquent comments and reminding us of the great progress being made at the state level where so many laws and policies have been enacted and were trying to do that on the federal level. Its my privilege to yield to martha roby, a member of the appropriations committee, and the Judiciary Committee. Mrs. Roby i thank you, representative smith, for leading this special order. The topic that were here to discuss tonight is one of utmost importance. Of course, next week we approach the 47th anniversary of the infamous roe v. Wade decision. And with this single ruling by the Supreme Court, abortion was legalized across the country. And while many abortion activists celebrate this time as a victory for socalled womens health, it represents a somber occasion for those of us who advocate for life. It is no secret that im unapologetically prolife and im opposed to abortion at any stage. While not everyone in this body shares my convictions surrounding the rights of unborn children, our prolife agenda has momentum and its strong. Next week, thousands of americans will gather in our Nations Capital to participate in this years march for life. This is an annual event where the prolife Community Joins together to advocate for the protection of unborn children. I know that some pro life supporters will be traveling from alabamas second district, almost 900 miles, defend the unborn. I want to take this opportunity to send a message to the thousands of marchers who are gathering to show their support for the pro life movement. Thank you. Thank you for your dedication to this most worthy cause and know that you are not alone in this fight. As you continue to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. Remember that my pro life colleagues and i stand with you. I promise to use this platform here in congress and beyond to be a vocal advocate for the unborn. I will not stop fighting until our laws and policies protect life at every stage and i hope you wont either. Thank you again. Yield back. Mr. Smith thank you very much, congresswoman roe by, for your powerful statement and leadership here in the house. I want to yield to dr. And injury harris a Board Certified anesthesiologist who has served so ably at Johns Hopkins and elsewhere and yield him such time as i may as he may consume. Mr. Harris i want to thank the gentleman for the work hes done over the decades to protect unborn life. Next week im going to have a birthday but 61 million americans arent. 61 million. Let that thought sink in for a second. Thats the population of california and florida together. Thats the number of americans who didnt get a chance to be born since roe v. Wade was passed. I spent over 30 years as an anesthesiologist on the labor and delivery suite, i was in charge of labor and delivery anesthesia at hopkins for decades, seeing the birth of literally thousands of babies, and not even beginning to comprehend the magnitude of the 61 million lives that never had that opportunity to be born. Next week, we are going to have the march for life. And mr. Speaker, i urge all the americans who are watching, tune in to one of those channels that shows the march for life. What youll be struck by are the number of young people who have not believed the lie about abortion. The lie that its a blob of tissue, that its not a human life that somehow that human life does not have the right to life. And i believe there are a lot of young people who march because this is the generation that knows that it was legal for them to be aborted. And i think they appreciate the fact that they werent. Now like mrs. Roby, im on the appropriations committee, and im glad to have fought to get planned parenthood defunded. By tax dollars. Because planned parenthood is the largest Abortion Provider in the United States. That means it is responsible for the taking of tens of millions of lives over the years. And not only that, but they actually promote using american tax dollars to provide abortions overseas as well. So im proud of our president. Because our president reestablished what we call the mexico city policy which is very simple, mr. Speaker. It says that american tax dollars, hardworking american taxpayer dollars, should not be spent on providing abortions in foreign countries. Oh my gosh. Its bad enough that we fund, we still Fund Planned Parenthood here in this country but my gosh, spending tax dollars to pay for abortions in foreign countries. So thank goodness our president stands firmly pro life. Some people suggest the most prolife president weve ever had. At such a good time to be the most prolife president. As the death toll climbs to over 60 million, it is rapidly approaching the time to say enough is enough. This is the largest and most important human rights issue we face. This country has faced human rights issues before. We have to face this challenge and we have to turn back the legalization of the killing of millions of americans before theyre even born. I yield back. Mr. Smith thank you so much. Id like to yield to ralph norman, the distinguished member from south carolina, also the sponsor of the ensuring accurate nd complete abortion data act. Mr. Norman thank you, chairman smith, thank you for your hard work and what you do on a daily basis to protect the lives of the unborn. I solemnly stand before you ofay on the 47th anniversary roe vs. Wade, a decision that has corrupted the very foundation of our unalienable right to life as citizens of this great country. Life is a precious gift from our creator. From conception to natural death. And i have been dead kitted to protecting the rights of the unborn since the day i was sworn into congress. Its a fight that i will vow to continue until the last day that i serve in this body. As a proud grandfather of 17 beautiful grandchildren, the sanctity of life is cherished. Let me give you an example. Just a few months ago, september 25, our 17th grandchild was born three months premature. His name was warren. We were unsure if he would survive. But in a by the grace of god and the love and support of roiky and friends, the hoe work of the great doctors and nurses that warren is still with us today. Fter more than 100 days in the neonatal intensive care unit, warren is finally able to leave the hospital last week. Each moment we spend with him is a true miracle. That i will never take for granted. Warren was, to give you an example, one pound, 15 ounces when he was born and you can see the elements of his personality from the very beginning. E was a fighter. Its a daily reminder that the lives of millions of other children, the same size as warren was when he was born, was allowed to be cut short due to the ruling of roe vs. Wade. Its truly unfathomable to think that the rule of law in this great country permits the intentional killing of the most vulnerable population. While most americans agree it is morally wrong to end an unborn human life by abortion, its also morally wrong to take taxpayer dollars to promote abortion at home or abroad as has been stated. Yet in the original released annual report, planned parenthood boasts spending 617 million on the mass murder of over 345,000 children in this country in just one year. Premeditatedly 947 killings each day by the billiondollar abortion business. These statistics are not only alarming but quite frankly theyre grotesque. Theyre among the many reasons why it will not be only continue to support commonsense prolife legislation as the bipartisan born alive abortion survivors protection act but will also march in solidarity with millions of americans nationwide and hundreds of south carolinians from the district i serve in honor of those who werent given that chance that so many of us have been given. On this dark anniversary, let us unite and rededicate ourselves to protecting the unborn. I yield back. Mr. Smith thanks for sharing that beautiful story of your grandchild, what a tenacious spirit, our prayers are with him as he prospers and thrives. Id like to yield to my good friend and colleague, brian babin, the gentleman from texas. Mr. Babin thank you very, very much. My friend, my colleague from new jersey, chris smith, for having this special order which is so, so very important. Theres no greater champion for colleague, chris smith. I also want to thank every one of my colleagues who are surrounding me tonight or here speaking for those who are voiceless. Madam olemnly today, speaker, in memory of the Supreme Courts tragic decision in roe v. Wade. 47 years ago. This appalling decision. Since that time more than 60 million innocent human beings have been killed in the name of abortion and convenience. Throughout our history, americans have been the very first to protect the defenseless around the world, repeatedly, through the centuries. Yet here at home we have allowed our very most vulnerable to come under vicious attack. Under vicious attack. And as the father of five children and the grandfather of 16 beautiful grandchildren, i have no manufacturer important duty personally than to protect the lives of all americans. And as members of congress, we have that same duty to protect all americans, especially the ones who have no voice. Nd i am proud to and i am proud to support the steps taken by the trump swradmrgs administration who is the most prolife president in the history of this country. And his fight to save innocent lives from abortion. We are so very grateful for his bold executive efforts to protect the lives of the unborn, unborn, which have been so very, very effective. And as thousands of americans gather once again here in washington, d. C. Next week to stand up for life, let us be renewed in our purpose to end abortion. With that, thank you and i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you very much. It is my distinct honor to yield such time as he may consume to dr. Mark green, the gentleman rom tennessee. Mr. Green thank you, mr. Speaker. For almost half a century we have watched our nation dehumanize an entire group of people based on their age with the roe decision allowing the killing of 60 million unborn children. S the largest human rights violation of our time. As Martin Luther king jr. Said, theres no graded scale of essential worth among people. This truth is something the evil organization planned parenthood deliberately chooses not to see, ending lives and selling baby parts for the sake of science. As american as americas largest Abortion Provider it performs over 320,000 every single year all in the name of freedom. But theres quite obviously absolutely no such thing as a right or freedom to end someone elses life. As Ronald Reagan said, isnt it interesting that all who support abortion have already been born . We must defend the equal right to life for everyone. If we cant do that, what are we even doing here . I yield back. Mr. Smith thank you, dr. Green. Id like to yield to jim baird, a bronze star winner, purple heart recipient. Thank him for his service and thank him for his witness. Mr. Baird i thank my colleague for having this special order. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to reflect on the 47th anniversary of the roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision. We just had a which has had a devastating effect on protecting the sanctity of life and advancing the rights of the unborn. This illfated decision has had drastic negative consequences and has expanded the jab hornet practice of abortion across this country. Despite the effects roe v. Wade has had on the sanctity of life, im inspired to see so many of my fellow members of Congress Join me in continuing the fight for the unborn. Whether it be by signing the discharge petition to bring the bornalive abortion survivors protection act to the floor for a vote, or by cosponsoring legislation to prohibit the use of taxpayer funding in abortions. My house colleagues and i will continue to fight to protect life. Just a couple of weeks ago, i was proud to join the 206 of my Congressional Colleagues in signing an am cuss brief filed with the u. S. Supreme court concerning the louisiana case of medical services. I look forward to seeing the court review this case and others in hopes that they may issue a decision that reflects will of the majority of americans to protect the unborn. Yield back. R. Smith thank you very much. Mr. Smith thank you very much. Id like now yield to my good friend and colleague, steve chabot. Steve chabot was the prime author of a law to save bornalive children. A law that we are now looking to strengthen, with 191 cosponsors, but i want to thank steve for that leadership. Its extraordinary. Mr. Chabot thank you very much. I want to mr. Speaker, i want to thank chris smith for his leadership and his commitment to advancing prolife legislation for literally decades now. And hes been a leader for many of us and weve watched and followed in his footsteps in many ways. A previous speaker, andy harris, mentioned that his birthday is next week and i share something with him, because my birthday happens to be next week as well. Not only is it next week, but its on january 22, which is the very day that the horrific roe v. Wade decision was issued. And since for decades now i literally on my birthday cant help but thinking, with all the joy you have with your family or with friends or colleagues in celebrating your birthday, i cant help but think of those millions and millions of little innocent unborn babies that were not born, that have never experienced life because of a tragic decision that was made that they had no part in making that decision at all, but their life was ended before they were able to share the blessing that life is. Thats why we need to overturn that horrific roe v. Wade decision and many of us have been working for years and years now to do that. Or to do everything we can up to that point until ultimately the court makes that decision. We have a responsibility, i believe, to protect the most vulnerable among us, and that is innocent unborn babies. It was one of the principle reasons that i wanted to come to congress. It was one of the principle reasons i wanted to be on the Judiciary Committee, and i was blessed to be chosen by one of the legends in the prolife community, probably the father of the Prolife Movement here in the house, and that was the late henry hyde who chaired the Judiciary Committee and next to henry crist certainly is the i was, since henry, but as chris mentioned, being a member of the Judiciary Committee, it took me a number of years, been able to work my way up to the chair of that committee and did successfully pass the bornalive infant protection act, which saved babies that they were literally closets. Utility we had nurses that had form early worked at abortion formerly worked at Abortion Clinics and told horrible stories of what happened. Thats no longer the law. We need to go beyond that. And to pass what is probably he most significant prolife legislation, and thats the ban on partial birth abortion. We fought for eight years, all the way to the u. S. Supreme court, steve king and so many other folks, twice to the Supreme Court, and ultimately i remember when that decision came down. I was in Judiciary Committee when we heard about it and were so excited. And we dont know exactly how many babies, we think tens of thousands of year that that has saved. But were still losing so many other innocent unborn lives every year in this nation. 61 million since roe v. Wade that we know of. So i just want to thank all my colleagues who are here this evening and spending their time , to do something, i think, which is probably one of the most one of the most worthy things we can do with our time here in the house and thats to try to protect those that cannot protect themselves. So thank you to all that are here and i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you, steve. And thank you for that leadership. Id like to now yield to the gentleman from georgia. Mr. Hice i thank my colleague, chris smith, for leading this special order. As we memorialize countless lives that have been lost in the last 47 years, since the roe v. Wade decision, he and all my colleagues here are champions for life and i want to thank them for their commitment and their resolve to address this issue. The march for life is a unique event in american culture. It is the only march where 100 of the participants are marching on behalf of someone else. Marching on behalf of the most vulnerable among us, those who have not yet had the opportunity to take their first breath of life. Is special order, annually commemorating the march for life, stands as a memorial to those lives that have been lost to abortion. And its time for this chamber to mark that dreadful decision of the Supreme Court and to mourn the results of that decision. This is a time for us to carefully consider the choices of our nation and the realization that those choices have dire consequences. This is our time to learn from those past decisions and to, with fresh determination, do all we can to make sure that we dont repeat the mistakes of the past and that they are not repeated. Its for that reason that ive introduced House Resolution 50, which would memorialize the unborn by lowering the flag of the United States to halfstaff on the 22nd of every january. It would be known as a day of tears, memorializing the ocean of tears that have been lost and shed to the millions, countless children who have never had a chance to live. I believe every human life is sacred. I believe that life begins at conception. And if we dont stand on behalf of the unborn, who will . Thats the question. So its on their behalf that each of us here, we will never waiver, we will never quit, we will continue fighting with everything we have for life. No matter how long the battle is, no matter how intense it may become, we will not cease our effort until every child is given the gift of life that only god gives. The gift of life. I thank you. Mr. Smith thank you so very much. Thanks for reminding the members, as well as those who might be watching on cspan, of the selflessness of the Prolife Movement. The people who will be marching are doing it for others. And increasingly at every march there are more women who are post abortive who now speak postabortive who now speak out on behalf of their lost child and they admonish and encourage others not to make that same terrible, irreversible mistake. I yield to my colleague. Mr. Fortenberry thank you, congressman smith. First of all, let me acknowledge your tireless work on behalf of human rights, justice, human dignity. You are authentically the conscience of this congress and im so grateful for your leadership and deep friendship. Mr. Speaker, as you walk down this aisle, as i just did, if youll notice this beautiful rostrum in this well where we speak, along the sides are a couple of words, they express the deepest noble sentiments of what it means to be an american. Union, justice, peace. But theres another word thats often overlooked and the right here. It says tolerance. And were living in a very interesting age. Were living in, in a certain sense, a very divided age. We seem to be struggling with our narrative as a nation, particularly politically. But something beautiful is happening. There is a new momentum among this new generation that is coming up that is wrestling with these deeper questions as to how you build a more just nation. How you include people who have been left out. How do you struggle for peace . How do you find authentic reedom, liberty . Tolerance . Creating the tolerance. Creating the space for protection of that sacred space of conscience, of deliberation that we have in this body, that is built upon a fundamental foundation of life. The protection of the ideals of life. We cannot say that we are going to include everybody and celebrate diversity except for them, the littlest ones, the smallest ones, the most vulnerable ones, the unborn child. And the mothers that carried them in their womb. We have to do better. The young people cannot reconcile this paradox. They cant. Thats why tens of thousands of them are going to come here next week, and a number from my home state of nebraska, and im very proud of them, and theyre going to do the american thing. Theyre going to exercise their civil rights for the most noblist of sentiment, namely, tolerance. For the most innocent. For the most vulnerable. And theyre going to say to us, who are older and who have to shepherd this nation, please, please open your hearts and minds. We have to do better. We must do better. And no matter how deep the problem, no matter how severe the circumstance, we should be , ving enough, caring enough big enough and we certainly have resources enough to be a community that cares and loves and helps. No matter how difficult the circumstances. I yield back. Mr. Smith thank you. Thank you very much, jeff, for at very eloquent remarks, but for your clarity as well. Youve always been such a clear speaker. Thank you so much. Id like to yield to dr. Marshall, the gentleman from kansas, and, again, i would like to point out to the chair that we have so many doctors, m. D. s, who are speaking out on behalf of unborn children and their moms, i want to thank dr. Marshall for that as well. Mr. Marshall tonight, mr. Speaker, tonight we mourn the 47th anniversary of roe v. Wade. Today we mourn the loss of over 50 million american lives. Mr. Speaker, my good friend and colleague from new jersey, my colleagues here tonight, yall know that i dedicated my professional life to delivering babies. Every day, every other day for 30 years i had the honor to deliver a baby. Sometimes it was one. Ive delivered as many as 12 babies in a day. But a subject ive never talked about up here, a subject that few americans talk about, is infertility and recurrent miss carriages. Hundreds miscarriages. Hundreds of thousands of women have these problems. And for whatever reason, when i took care of women with miscarriages, women who so desperately wanted to have a baby, it might be her third, her fourth, her fifth , unable to have a baby, it was that moment it was at moments like that when i thought about roe vs. Wade. , un it never made sense to me. You know, this morning i read from the book in the bible, trying to make some sense of life up here. And still here i am 50some years of age and havent found the answer. How i can live in a country where in one hospital im fighting to help a woman keep a baby, and 100 miles away the largest Abortion Clinic in the country is taking life away . How can we live in that type of a country . Tonight i pledge, i recommit, i recommit my support, my efforts to protect life. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. Mr. Smith thank you, dr. Marshall. So very much. Id like to now yield to mike johnson. Mr. Johnson thank you. I appreciate you yielding for a moment. Mr. Speaker, here we are again. Marking this tragic anniversary as we do every year. And the reason we have such sorrow and such a burden is because it is such an unspeakable sorrow, whats happened to nearly 60 million innocent, unborn children in this country. You know, our nations birth certificate is the declaration of independence. And it states succinctly the american creed, and we know it by heart. We hold these truths to be selfevident, that all men are created equal and theyre endowed by their creator with sent rights and among those are the rights to life, liberty and the you are suit of happiness. The founders recognized life first among those rights because they acknowledge that we are made in the image of a holy god. And because of that, theres some very serious implications that follow it. It means every single human life has an estimate has inestimateable dignity and value and our value isnt related in any way to our socioeconomic status, the color of our skin, what zip code we live in, how talented we may be or what we can contribute to society. Our value is inherent because, as our founders acknowledged, it is given to us by our creator. Roe v. Wade tragically defied that american creed. It has resulted in the murder of more than 60 million innocent american children. How can we stand by and allow this to happen . We cant and we will not. I would just say this in the very brief moment that i have, tonight, we will continue to pray, we will continue to work, we will continue to legislate, we will continue to litigatened we will continue to march and stand for women and children and the sanctity of every single human life. Until the promise of our nations birth certificate is realized. I yield back. Mr. Smith id like to yield to congressman latta, the gentleman from ohio. Mr. Latta thank you, mr. Speaker, i rise in support of the right to life for every unborn child but before i start i want to thank the gentleman from new jersey for your tireless work and efforts to reverse this decision. And make sure that life is what were about in this country. Tragically, in the 47 years since roe v. Wade, there have been more than 60 million abortions in our country. This is more than a statistic. These are innocent lives lost. Either this decision is brought back before the Supreme Court, abortions could still be prevalent due to the increasing use of chemical abortion pills. Thats why my bill, the save moms and by bys act is necessary to ensure the current f. D. A. Policy regulating these dangerous pills will stay in place preventing expanded use to protect the health and safe i have to women. I am a committed advocate for prolife policies for the protection of the sanctity of life. I appreciate and thank those who offer an unwavering dedication to defending the unborn, despite a culture that often marginalizes pro life values. Such perseverance is incredibly inspiring, it is an important reminder that we must all be a voice for the voiceless. The fight for life must continue. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you for your leadership on that bill and other pro life pieces of legislation. I would like to yield to john rhodes, the gentleman from tennessee. Mr. Rhodes i thank the gentleman from new jersey for yielding me this time. Mr. Speaker, today on behalf of the tens of millions of voices forever lost by avorgs since roe vs. Wade, i come before the body to mourn the tragic loss of life our country has experienced in this last 47 years. The tennesseans i represent overwhelmingly support the right to life. And like most folks in tennessees sixth Congressional District, i firmly believe that life begins at conception. Mr. Rose throughout my first term in congress, i have been proud to fight for the children still to come who cannot speak for themselves. As a father, i am especially touched by the solemn and joyous responsibility our heavenly father entrusts to us through the blessing of little ones. Even one childs life shortened before reaching his or her own godgiven potential is a tragedy. And yet that has happened tens of millions of times in the last 47 years since roe vs. Wade was decided in the Supreme Court. Heart breakingly, norma mccorvi, also known as jane roe, was a real mother and ultimately she was a real advocate for the unborn. Later in her life, ms. Mccorvi came to faith in god and joined the prolife community in believing that every childs life is worth protecting. Ms. Mccorvi is no longer with us but her story lives on. Today i call on my colleagues to search their souls just as ms. Mccorvi, jane roe, did and choose life. Who are we to decide which precious children designed by god have the chance to live on this earth and which do not. Our country was founded with this belief underscored, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. With the words of the declaration of independence in mind, i signed on to an amicus brief supporting life in the upcoming june medical services vs. Lee Supreme Court case. It is well past time for the Supreme Court to uphold the right to life and overrule roe vs. Wade. Ms. Mccar vi, jane roe, agreed and overwhelmingly so did the tennesseans that i represent. In this new decade, may our countrys legacy be of life and a new generation of hope. I yield back. Mr. Smith thank you very much. I would now like to yield to tim walberg. Mr. Walberg around her neck hung a gold necklace that said best mom. A Christmas Present from her two daughters. Stephanie closed her eyes, just as she does at the dentist. That way i dont have to see whats going on, she said. 10 minutes later, the sleepless night the tighter jean the third child that she said would have strained the familys finances were a memory. That shocking article was in the Chicago Tribune 17 years ago, 2003. That child, who would have strained the familys finances, would have been a Senior High School student and who knows what more. Back then, 40 million babies had een aborted since roe v. Wade. Today, 61 million. Anuary 22 marks the 47th ignominy of roe vs. Wade. As recently as yesterday in committee, i heard abortion defended as a, quote, womens constitutional right to choose whats best for her own body and interests. Now someone decried the fact, congressman smith, that there are so many men standing and speaking today. But we men have always stood to defend the innocent. Defend our families. And so proudly today we do the same. Charles darwin said, great is the power of steady misrepresentation and so weve created a lie. Weve chosen a lie. Weve been sold a lie. Weve lived a lie. Weve even tried to make it the truth. But its still a lie. And children, innocents, and women, have been hurt. Because of it. And ultimately all life has been cheap and diminished. May god change our hearts. Our children are not our burdens. Theyre our hope. Our children are tomorrows dreams and ideas and imagination. Our children are the pioneers who unlock more secrets of gods universe, harness new technologies for peace, strive to create a world freer from want and bring forth longawaited cures for dreaded diseases. They are our artists, our poets, who will make life more vivid and colorful and the faithful who will serve god and their fellow beings. Babies arent a choice once theyre conceived. Theyre a gift. From our loving creator god. Thomas jefferson wisely stated, the god who gave us life gave us liberty at the same time. So i end by saying human liberty is inseparable inaccept rahably linked to human life. God help us as a nation to choose life and liberty. I yield back. Mr. Smith i would like to yield to bill flores, the gentleman from texas, texas 17th district. Mr. Flores mr. Smith, i thank you for your great work to protect life and reflect the values of this that this country holds dear. Mr. Speaker, i rise today in remembrance of the millions of innocent lives that lost in the 47 years since the tragic Supreme Court decision roe vs. Wade. Since 1973, freely accessible abortion has fostered a culture of death in america and the expansion of clinics like planned parenthood have normalized abortion an stolen the futures of over 50 million innocent lives. Heres some statistics from planned parenthoods on annual report. 2019 alone they aborted 345,670 innocent, defenseless lives. Think about that from a personal perspective. That is over 100,000 more persons than the population of waco in mcclennan county, its, the largest county in texas district 17 that has 250plus thousand texans. This genocide constitutes over 96 of the pregnancy Resolution Services as they call them, whereas prenatal and adoption Referral Services accounted for less than 4 of pregnancy Resolution Services. While they may seek to mask their intentions under banners of womens health, make no mistake, planned parenthood is an abortion factory dedicated to providing, protecting and expanding access to abortion. Moreover, Something Else to think about, at least 50 of those babies killed are girls. Recent reports indicate that over 50 are children of color. Think about the misogyny and racism of those genocidal numbers. I strongly believe that life begins at conception and that as a father and a christian i am deeply committed to protecting the sanctity of life. In the 116th congress i have sought to be a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves and cosponsored over 20 bills to protect life. Im proud to have joined 206 other pro life members of congress in signing a recent amicus brief to the Supreme Court. If successful this socalled right to abortion as outlined in roe vs. Wade is considered unworkable by the courts then it is time to overturn that tragic decision. Mr. Speaker, i close with this. Millions of americans believe that life begins at conception. And must be protected. I stand with those americans to fight for the lives that may be snuffed out before theyve even begun. We must fight for those who have been denid opportunity grow, to flourish and make an impact on our world. Mr. Smith i yield to thank you, bill, for that statement. I yield to doug lamborn, the gentleman from colorado. Mr. Lamborn today i rise to mark with sadness the 47th anniversary of roe v. Wade. This tragic Supreme Court decision has resulted in the loss of over 60 million unborn babies lives. This surpasses the number killed by stalin and hitler combined. In a country today where so many social and Technological Advancements have been achieved, how is that we still fail to value the most fundamental part of human society, a human life . The repercussions of roe have been disastrous. Over 60 million children have lost their lives because of roe. I am dismayed by the arguments i hear coming from those who call themselves pro choice. Those 60 million unborn were not given a choice. I have two wonderful and lovely daughters in law who are expecting babies as we speak right now. I am so glad that these two principled women and their husbands value life. Now our choice is to be the voice for the voiceless. I am proud to stand here with my colleagues in congress for the cause of life. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. Mr. Smith i yield such time as i may consume to my friend and colleague. Can i inquishe how much time do we have left . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman has 14 minutes remaining. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I have four children and 13 grandchildren. And i cant imagine life without them and the love that we have for each other. In fact, every human life from the moment of conception is precious, worthy of dignity and respect. The right to life should not be a political debate. Mr. Allen as a society, we should be united in the understanding that killing another human being, a baby, unborn child, is immoral and unconstitutional. But in 1973, the Supreme Court make abortion available throughout pregnancy for nearly any reason. Mr. Speaker, there are only five countries in the world that allow abortion after the first five months. And unfortunately, the u. S. Is one of them. But americans want better. 8 of americans believe that abortion should be restricted. However, radicals are taking abortion to the extreme, trying to justify killing a healthy, sevenpound baby, up until the point of birth. Can you imagine . Some even try to justify killing a baby that survives an abortion attempt. In fact, in fact, we have a petition on this floor called the bornalive petition. And there are 240 members of this body who refused to sign that petition. This is repugnant. Can you imagine, as the Virginia Governor described, a baby born in a botched abortion , what we do is make the child comfortable and then talk with the mother and the other stakeholders to disease whether we kill the baby that is unamerican. In the 47 years since roe v. Wade, we killed over 60 million of these children. Thats why im proud to cosponsor h. R. 50, which will memorialize the unborn by lowering the United States flag to halfstaff on the 22nd of january each year. I pray that the hearts and minds of every person in this country, particularly those who are members of this body, will change and vote for life. Thank you, and i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you. I appreciate my good friend and colleague for his very eloquent statement. Id like to yield to ted yoho such time as he may consume. Mr. Yoho thank you, mr. Speaker. Chris, i cant tell you how proud i am. You are one of my heroes for doing what youre doing. You have never wavered on this. Thank you. As we approach the anniversary of roe v. Wade, it is a solemn reminder of the tragedy that continues to befall some of our nations unborn children welch should repeat this again on mothers day. For 47 years, our nation has allowed the sanctity of life to be questioned and infringed upon. All of us in this chamber are here because we were granted the blessing of life, we were allowed to live our lives and decide what path we wished to embark upon. Unfortunately not all americans are allowed this choice. Some children are stopped before they can even defend themselves. I, along with my colleagues, cannot and will not accept that reality. A reality that where we as a nation provide more protection for an unhatched bald eagle or a turtle egg than we do the children of our own species. It is my hope that on this anniversary we can pray for the souls of those children lost and work towards a future where we all where all children are allowed to decide their own future and this blessed nation in this blessed nation of ours. Our Founding Fathers were grounded in the christian principles this nation was founded on. If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then i will hear from heaven and i will forgive their sins and will heal their lands. I yield back. Mr. Smith thank you very much, ted. Id like to now yield such time as he may consume to dr. John joyce and point out to my colleagues that there are so many medical doctors who are part of this prolife effort and hopefully their views, like all of our, but theirs especially, will be weighed and hopefully people will agree to the great work that youre doing. Thank you. Mr. Joyce thank you. Mr. Speaker, i thank this gentleman for yielding. And i want to acknowledge mr. Smith from new jersey for taking such courageous leadership on this very important issue. We as a body thank you. 47 years of the amoral destruction of life is 47 years too long. As a physician, my prolife conviction is rooted in the hippocratic oaths commitment to protecting human life. In the medical community, each of us is called to do everything in our power to protect the patients to whom we are assigned. Each of us pledges to do no harm. Mr. Speaker, roe v. Wade directly contradicts this oath. Each life is a precious gift that is truly worthy of our protection. As our nation marks another tragic anniversary of roe v. Wade, i remain committed to serving as a steadfast voice for the voiceless. And as we continue this fight, i remain eternally hopeful that our nation will someday value all human life for its inherent worth and its dignity. Thank you, and i yield back the balance of my time. Mr. Smith thank you very much, doctor. Id like to now yield such time as he may consume to steve watkins, the gentleman from kansas city, second district. Mr. Watkins i thank the gentleman from new jersey. And, chris, thank you for your leadership on this. This congress is better because of it. And this nation is better because of your efforts. Mr. Speaker, i rise to be a voice for the voiceless. There is no effort more important than us protecting the sanctity of life. As a true political freshman and new to congress, new to politics, i was so proud that the first bill i put my name on was to deFund Planned Parenthood. Most recently, i introduced h. R. 4800, this is the prolife act. My bill would close the valuable quoteunquote valuable consideration loophole provided by by prohibiting the sale of human fetal tissues. These are unborn babies hearts and livers and bones and brains. Theyre used in experiments. Id urge my colleagues, please sign on to my prolife act, h. R. 4800. God bless the unborn. And may god have mercy on us all. I yield my time. Mr. Smith thank you so much. Id like to now yield to my friend and colleague from texas, michael cloud. Mike. Mr. Cloud thank you. January 22 marks the 47th anniversary of the United States Supreme Court decision roe v. Wade. On that day in a historic moment of judicial overreach and without legislative action, the Supreme Court declared abortion legal in our country. Since then, 61 million babies have been robbed of their right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Today we know much more than we did when roe v. Wade was handed down. Much has been revealed about the unborn child. We know, for example, beyond any shadow of doubt that unborn babies feel and react to pain at just 20 weeks. Which means, yes, they do feel the pain of an abortion. Fetal heart rate monitors and ultrasounds are commonly used by ex pack contaminant mothers today, ex peck contaminant mothers today, but expectant mothers today, but when this was limited in 1973, we know the sounds of heartbeats and images of a moving baby reveal one thing to us and that is life. Continued scientific discovery in the Technological Advancements have only strengthened the case that the life of a child yet to be born is precious. I do believe that everyone has a right to life and equal protection under the law. Thomas jefferson once said, i indeed tremble for my country when i reflect that god is just and that his justice cannot sleep forever. I pray for gods mercy on this nation and pray that we in this chamber and those across our nation will continue to Work Together to end this injustice. Thank you, and i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you very much. Id like to now yield to another gentleman from texas, congressman rice. Thank him for sponsoring the abortion prevention act and the child custody protection act. Thank you for that. Thank you. The moral and religious fabric of the United States was tragically torn. As a result of the roe v. Wade decision, 61 million unborne children have lost unborn children have lost their lives and millions of families have been torn apart by abortion. Mr. Wright i promised my constituents that i would be a voice for the voiceless in washington and i have no intention of breaking that promise. Over the past year, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have time and time again blocked legislation that protects the unborn and womens health. Last year we saw lawmakers block the bornalive act over 80 times. Implicitly endorsing infant side. Infanticide. Until of important bills have beened introduce introduced in this congress, including my two acts, that protects yuck women who are being taken across state lines for an abortion. Both have been stalled by partisan politics. We also saw lawmakers in new york and virginia cheer gislation that would allow abortions in the ninth month of pregnancy, when most babies are viable. This is an outrage. Protecting the voiceless unborn is one of the most significant contributions we can make in our lives and we as a nation need to get back to protecting it. Thank you. And i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you so very much. Id like id like to now yield such time as he may consume to michael guest, the gentleman from mississippis third Congressional District. Mr. Guest before i formed you in the womb, i knew you. Before you were born, i set you apart. In the 47 years that have passed since roe v. Wade, over 45 million americans have tragically been robbed of their lives through abortion. The fight to protect the lives of our unborn children, however, has grown stronger since roe v. Wade. As we have developed a better understanding of the immense consequences that abortion afflicts on the mother, our society and, most importantly, the child in the womb. Individual states, including my home state of mississippi, have enacted more than 1,000 preventive laws to protect the unborn. As a prolife member, i am proud to join the Bipartisan Group of representatives and senators who have filed an amicus brief that outlines the arguments of why roe v. Wade should be overturned. And i am grateful for the tremendous leadership of President Trump and his administration to ensure the federal governments regulatory efforts to preserve life. I encourage every american to join the movement to protect our unborn children and support efforts to defend the right to life. Thank you. And i yield back. Mr. Smith thank you. Are we out of time . Ok. Thank you. Appreciate it. The speaker pro tempore under the speakers announced policy of january 3, 2019, the chair recognizes the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. Grothman, for 30 minutes. Mr. Grothman as i understand it, some of my friends up here have some more interesting things to say. So im going to yield how many minutes do i have . The speaker pro tempore you have 30 minutes. Mr. Grothman why dont i yield 12 minutes to my good friend, chris smith, here to doll out as he wants dole out as he wants. Mr. Smith thank you. I yield to my friend, joe wilson. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from wisconsin controls the time. Mr. Smith ok. Mr. Wilson thank you, mr. Speaker, and thank you to congressman chris smith for your dedication and leadership and thank you, congressman grothman from wisconsin, for yielding. On january 22, 1973, the Supreme Court struck down state and federal right of life laws in their decision of roe v. Wade. Since then, over 61 million unborn children have been stripped of their right to life and our country has been denied itself future teachers, doctors, neighbors, friends and loved ones. I am grateful to stand with my colleagues in congress to defend the right to life for the unborn. In the house, we have worked to pass prolife legislation, commonsense legislation such as h. R. 962, the bornalive abortion survivors protection act. This bill would give a child a right to live if he or she is born alive following an abortion or an attempted abortion. With over 191 cosponsors, this bill has been shamefully blocked by the House Democrats for a vote 80 different times. Last weekend i attended the right to life dinner featuring governor macmaster and first lady peggy macmaster and appreciate participating with thousands of citizens across the state for a program at the state house in columbia. South carolinas citizens for life worked tirelessly to protect innocent human lives lives and i appreciate the leadership of lisa, holly, alexa, karen, brenda and sali for their hard work and dedication. I look forward to welcoming next weekend participants for the march for life in washington. Each year tens of thousands of students from across america will show their appreciation of life. This year is special in that my ldest grandson and namesake, Addison Wilson iii, will attend with a delegation from his school. Yield back my time. Mr. Grothman thank you. Id like to yield another two inutes to congressman lamalfa. Mr. Lamalfa thank you, to my colleague, mr. Grothman, and also chris smith for your tireless leadership on this. In the 47 years since roe v. Wade, more than 60 million unborn childrens lives have ended too soon. Life is the most fundamental human right. I believe that life begins at conception. Science continues to build the case for this. And as technology develops, women are getting a clearer view of the lives of their babies when they go to the doctors office. At just six weeks, an ultrasound can detect a childs heart beat. At 20 weeks a baby we know can feel pain in the womb. And unfortunately many states still allow abortions after this stage. There is no fooling anyone. These are true lives inside the womb. Not just clumps of cells. Ience says life exists and these babies deserve to have the right to live. So thank you to all the Freedom Fighters that we hear this month in the march for life and those o are doing it in at those clibics and prolife centers and have to endure harsh rhetoric and doing the lords work and god bless you and thank you for being part of this. I would like to yield to ongressman biggs from arizona. Mr. Biggs i appreciate the gentleman for sharing his time and representative. Im grateful to live in arizona a state that prioritizes the protection of the unborn. Of assed and arizona is one the three top life states. Appreciate the to work tirelessly to have women choose life. We are taking in phoenix. Proabortion nifts, they deny what the science has demonstrated about the unborn. There is nothing that we do that we have efficacy and if fail to protect. This congress i introduced the abortion is not Health Care Act deductible med i believe expense. Nd i have sponsored the defund act as we are here when my wife was pregnant and we expected ach of our children. Even without todays technology, we knew that each of those children were special, a unique individual. Alive and helpless, dependant upon us, we had responsibility for their safety and wellbeing. How can this nation founded under the principles and understanding of gods direction and happened in the form ace of this country, how can we expect the affirming and continued blessings of the diety of whom e revere if we continue to sacrifice. I call on my colleagues to end this practice and i thank you nd yield back. I recognize representative gome merit and yield two minutes to him. Gohmert and i yield two minutes. Mr. Gohmert im grateful and chris for your work in this area. There was a time not long ago en we were speaking at the society who spoke to us, an extraordinary woman. She was top in her class as i recall, and became pregnant at 16 and encouraged by some to abort the child and didnt, but she didnt go on to college and there was an opening for director at the planned parent hood center. And she had the chance to be director, but she had that daughter that meant and meant so much to her and she was surprised at the monthly meetings that the thing that was pushed most not to the get the number of abortions up but if they would push Birth Control mills to the younger girls, then that would assure they would have revenue up and the key was getting Birth Control pills to the youngest girls they were ikely to miss days and pregnant. They were trained to encourage the young girls, well keep this between us, your mom cant be trusted, we can, and keep your secrets and have enjoy yourself and if there are problems, you dont have to tell your parents. That is so destructive to the families. Its destructive to the mother life child relationship, and it has led to the millions of abortions that have been performed as sanctioned by planned parenthood. One other thing i have to mecks we struck me so harshly, lateterm who did abortions and said he did over a thousand over them. And so, for a lateterm abortion and he was graphic about the manner he went in and you would find something that was linear and either a arm an or leg and you had to feel for something and had to be crushed and you could remove the child. After his daughter was killed in an accident, he couldnt doing it anymore. It was more than he could bear. It ought to be more than americans consider bear, coming between a mother and daughter, the mother who wants the best for her child should be unthinkable for a living, caring mother, that ought to be unthinkable. That is what roe versus wade has led to. You are just a guy, what do you know . I have defended and some people have said, sole people indefensible and it is an honor to stand up for a child who cannot speak. I yield back. Mr. Grothman i yield to congressman davidson from ohio. Mr. Davidson i thank the colleagues who took the time to speak in speak of life. A protest will take place, march for life, hundreds of thousands of americans including the 8th district of ohio. When i have looked back, i have been filled with the future, the faces are young people. The younger generations and feel the effects of 60 million elective aboringses carried out. These lives have so much potential and could have been their spouse, brothers, sisters, but their lives were snuffed out. We should have compassion for the women whose babies lives have been snuffed out. Hey lacked support or deseffed into a choice to end their babies life. I want to honor and encourage ohio ike mya, mother of tate aruba who chose life. Next week is different. We celebrate a hopeful object tim mystic vision and the youth will rise and by the grace of god i will be with them and say it is time to end this and defend the right to life. I yield. Mr. Grothman i yield two more minutes to congressman chris smith of new jersey. R. Smith a florida abortion girl killed a girl at 23 weeks. She was gasping for air and cut her umbilical cord and put the bag in the trash. Heartbroken, they had a funeral ho she named and in her home state of florida . Just one year, 11 babies were born alive. Shockingly only six states, lorida, arizona, michigan, michigan and arizona and why the coverup . Of willard case former head Disease Control said live birth re little known because of legal action treats them more as an embarrassment to be hushed as a problem to be solved and turning yourself to be turned in. What is there to be gained . The tendency is not to report because there are negative incentives. Gosnell, one of the few who got caught got convicted after being born alive. The grand jury described it this year, gosnell had a simple solution for unwanted babies he delivered. He killed them. He didnt call it that. He called it ensuring fetal demise and ensured, the way he did it was sticking scissors in the back of the babys neck. He called that snipping. We have tried the whole year to andg this act introduced by wagner to a vote here in this house. I again with my colleagues appeal to the leadership. These children need protection. The unborn children need protection. Biggs have said we have a clear picture. Andy said without technology he and his wife knew there was a body. It shatters the myth and anything but human and alive. Lets protect the children. I yield back. Mr. Grothman im going to address a few topics i would like to discuss other topics and would like to address the march for life and dealing with the 47 tf anniversary of roe v. Wade and 200,000 people will be here and we are doing our work back in the district and wont be able to be here. Amazing in 1973, seven out of nine judges which is a bad testimony that felt that our forefathers felt of necessity de abortion and throughout much of our history, abortion has been legal and the vast majority of states. I believe that abortion was illegal in 4850 states. And it was just an outlandish decision. Since the decision has come down, we have had over 45 million lives cut short because of abortion in this country and you think of 45 million and think how large that is. If they were alive today, it uld be on the order of 1 7th tft current pop you lation of this country but our country has snuffed out. Assumed, ound i had they would see what they were dealing with and abortion would ickly become illegal and the ineffectiveness of our clearing so unlike 60 years ago, our country continues to allow this slaughter to continue. And even worse, america, which i do believe should be a shining light on the hill, we are only one of seven countries which allows late term abortions. Red china, vietnam and north korea, largely a pretty embarrassing set of countries and i hope americans stop and ponder how america still winds in such a ridiculous list particularly a wealthy country and so many people see what is going on. The bill signed into law in new york, a goal appears to be to allow you to snuff out the life of a newborn baby right before it was born. Theres danger that similar law that a similar law is going to pass in virginia. I challenge the clergy iny in this country, i know some of them dont like to say uncomfortable truths apparently, but i challenge them to do something here. There are movies that would be wise for the clergy in this country to make sure people were aware of so they saw exactly what was going on. Obviously what we have here is kind of a silent ending of millions of lives. Most people dont know what is going on, it doesnt affect them on a dal basis. But its time on a daily basis. But its time for the churches of this country to step up to the plate and i wish well for all the people who are going to come from all over the country and attend the march for life. Now, there are other things im going to address right now. One a little bit related. Id like to talk a little bit about the knights of columbus. We live in a society that claims to value diversity and tolerance. However, sometimes things bubble up in this town, its apparent that some people are hated and the intolerance applies to them. Im speaking, of course, of the fact that about two years ago, a little over two years ago now, a u. S. Senator from california, at part of a confirmation hearing, on a federal judge, decided to weigh in and feel that if you were a member of the knights of columbus, perhaps you shouldnt become a federal judge. Recently rereading the statements made there, and the lack of outrage at what apparently was a religious test or close to a religious test to become a federal judge, i thought id like to talk a little bit about the knights of columbus, which are very active in my district. The knights were founded as a Catholic Group in 1882, in connecticut. And currently there are about two million knights, almost exclusively in the United States, but there are also some , new zealand, england , or britain and a few other countries. They have been active during that time and they do a lot to help people. They seem almost ewe big which to us in my district with all the fundraisers they have. A few weeks ago i attended a meat raffle in which they were helping out a vietnam veteran who had cancer. He want to point out that the knights will help out not just catholic people, but people who arent catholic as well. They were also doing a Chili Fund Raiser to help a gentleman with prostate cancer. Other groups i see around could tootsie rolls. The fond du lac knights having fish fries for youth hockey and handicap children. E see the neenah nights knights running Concession Stands at packer games, other knights doing a calendar fundraiser for the local food pantry. The oshkosh knights doing a bowling fund riser for coats for kids or men for christ. You see the good works that the knights are doing everywhere. I wish i had time to go through all the other organizations and list the fundraisers they have. Who are con, wherever i go i horicon, wherever i go i see the knights helping people out. I consider the knights of columbus like mom and apple pie. Congressmen would go out of their way to praise groups like the knights of columbus and be seen with the knights of columbus. But apparently theyre not so much like mom and apple pie anymore. We have had members of this body, and not from small, insignificant states, members of this body apparently now feeling that that is something to be attacked for. And of course its not theyre helping out at Special Olympics or youth hockey. That cause them to be hated or feel they shouldnt be part of the public square. Its, of course, that they are active in the catholic church, a church that is prolife, that therefore apparently some Members Around here feel the knights of columbus therefore should step aside and cant be trusted on making decisions as far as where were going in the United States of america. Recently joe biden came out actually and even said that the senator of california would make a great vice president. Vice president. Can you imagine that . Can you imagine 40 years ago in this country somebody saying that the knights of columbus, that a member of the knights maybe shouldnt be a federal judge and say, thats a great thing she says, lets make her a vice president. I think thats a great thing. In any event, speaking on behalf of myself, id like to thank the knights for all they do around the sixth Congressional District. I hope they continue to speak out on christian issues, on catholic issues. I hope the other clergy, clergy who may not be catholic themselves, realize that they could be next to be targeted by these members of congress. But again, thank you to the knights of columbus for all you do. Now, im going to address i guess i have a few more minutes here. I have, what, five more minutes . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman has five minutes. Mr. Grothman five minutes. We spend a lot of time up here, too much time, on this impeachment thing. I think the reason people want to impeach want to talk about impeachment is they dont like to talk about all the things that ought to be getting done that the congress isnt doing when theyre talking about impeachment. I want to one more time talk about what i think is the number one issue thats going to destroy america. And that is the immigration situation. We continue to have people come across the border. President trump on his own has dropped the number of people coming in this country from over 50,000 allowed in this country and placed in this country last may to under 1,000 by the Border Patrol in december. Nevertheless, laws should be changed quickly to make sure that this does not continue or should be changed quickly before some of these federal judges decide to stop President Trump from trying to do what hes doing. We should the congress should be brought in to change the credible fear standard, to make sure everybody under the sun cant say that they should be a refugee. We want to change the laws with regard to traffic victim prosecution. The traffic victim protection reparations act. Right now, so people understand, if we get somebody under age 18 from canada or mexico or from canada or mexico, we can send them back. From other countries, were forced to keep families apart. I know President Trump would desperately like to return a minor from honduras or venezuela or cuba back to their parents, but right now hes forbidden to do that because congress refuses to act. We should be cracking down on welfare for Illegal Immigrants right now. Which serves as an inducement for the most irresponsible of people to come into the United States. But congress doesnt act. Weve built or were seen going soon going to build 100 miles toward the wall, but we still need more money. We hope we have enough money to get to 450 miles by the end of the year. But thats not going to be enough. Particularly when you consider that right now the d. E. A. Thinks that 95 of the fentanyl, cocaine, heroin or meth in this country is coming across our borders. And ill guarantee you there are people who are going back to their districts next week and if their town halls are claiming that they care about the over 60,000 people who died last year from these drugs, but they arent doing anything to 95 ce that border where of these drugs, fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and meth, are coming across, its time we act there as well. We need more money for what wed call nonintrusive technology. So we can determine when these drugs are coming across in cars. Or otherwise. As well as it would be a good thing to get more dogs. Ive been down at the border myself and seen how they effective they are, to prevent these drugs from coming across that are killing so many people. In any event, i hope the rest of the public and our mainstream media, as well as our conservative media, dont fall apart and dont fall into the trap of being all impeachment all the time over the next three or four months. Remember all the people who are dying because of the drugs coming across the border, remember the huge burden on the United States as more people aum m as more people come across the border for things such as Welfare Benefits and imagine what type of future america has if we dont begin to enforce our laws. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. Now the chair will receive a message. The messenger mr. Speaker, a message from the senate. The secretary mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore madam secretary. The secretary i have been directed by the senate to inform the house that the senate is ready to receive managers appointed by the house for the purpose of exhibiting articles of impeachment against donald john trump, president of the United States. The speaker pro tempore under the speakers announced policy of january 3, 2019, chair the chair now recognizes the gentleman from iowa, mr. King, for 30 minutes. Mr. King thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, its my privilege and honor to address you here the floor of the house of representatives. And given that weve had some serious discussion here this evening, and i really appreciate my colleagues, chris smith and others, who have spent an hour addressing the life issue here, and as we come up on the anniversary of roe v. Wade, january 22, i believe that is a date that will live in infamy. America is becoming a more and more prolife country. As we watch the transition thats taking place in this country, it has to do with the march of life that comes out here every year when thousands of people, many, many young people, ride from my neighborhood, about 18 or 20 hours on a bus, to get here, and they gather on the mall for the events and the speeches and the rally and then march to the Supreme Court building and we often host them here with some hot chocolate. Each of these years that go by, i meet more and more young people that have become part of the prolife network. So the network thats here, it strengthens people, they look around and they see theyre not alone. They come from church, they come from school, they come from families, they come from neighborhoods. And they understand that they are not alone, that theres a patchwork of people that are active across this country that is emerging into the majority in america. I will submit that we are now a majority of prolife nation. That would be consistent with polling, the poll that we did about i suppose a year and a half ago or a little more, that showed that just on the heart beat bill alone, which i happen to be the author of, h. R. 490, hat we saw 61 support for the heart beat bill without exceptions. Republicans were up at about 85 or 86 . The independents were around in the 60th percentile and democrats were even in support of it at 69 of democrats. May have been that america was a little bit ignorant about the beginning of life and the science of life and the moment that life begins. But we all knew that in our hearts. When in 1973 it was one thing, and it was a political agenda that was driven. And norma mckorffy regretted that she happened to be jane doe. So she actually didnt get an abortion and she became prolife in her later years and became a prolife activist. So it didnt serve her and it surely didnt serve america, with some number of over 61 million american babies have been aborted since that period of time. There have been struggles in this city. There have been women that come to this city and march for abortion. And so many women have come and marched for life. But heres what i see. In 1976, mr. Speaker, our firstborn child came into the world. Of course i anticipated that with eager and nervous anticipation. When that little boy, actually not so little, he was almost nine pounds, when he went into my hands and arms and i looked at him and held him in awe at the miracle that was and is today, it was just stunning to me that from my wife and i came this little baby, this miracle, to look at him, to look in his eyes, to see his dark hair and he turned out to be a blueeyed, darkhaired little guy and he had a lot of hair on his head and it was just such a miracle to see. Count the fingers and toes and look how perfectly they were formed. And there was, as he lay in his crib and i would sit and look at him, there was an aura about that little baby boy much there was an aura about him. You could have convinced me that he was the Second Coming of jesus christ. Thats how strong that was to me that the little boy, that little boy i thought this little guy here, how could anyone take his life here. Or how could someone take his life the minute before he was born or the hour before or the day before he was born or the week or the month or the trimester, the first, second or third trimester and i thought that through as i held that miracle in my hand and that life was precious the moment i could hold him and touch him and see him and feel that smell that fresh baby smell on him and within minutes i went back through the development of this miracle from the moment of conception until birth. At that moment, you couldnt take that little babys life and i knew his life began at the moment of conception and that miracle and millions of miracles needed to be protected that life begins at the moment of conception, 20 years ago, i went ut to the san diego republican and i had my colors on and all the things that are attached to your lapels and on the thursday afternoon on 3 00 and i see on the see Christian Women of choice are gathering. Something called me and said you have to go down there and see whats going on. I was curious, what scripture would be quoted to me. I took a friend with me and we found this area and an acre, hain linchinged fence, big old speakers and there were people still Milling Around and wasnt a Program Going on and i went to an individual and an individual and i asked him who was the leader of this and who was the head of the Christian Women of choice. We ended up on the stage. As the conversation began, there was a debate. For every delegate i remember the number, there was 15,000 press in that city to cover the convention. We had a lot of press where they would be looking for controversy. A noholes bar debate and every once in a while, he would bark some things at me, too. I was far enough from home. And convicted enough, having enough conviction who dont understand what that means, i could unload all of the things that needed to be said. She began to demand that we go out and collect the billions of dollars in Child Support what is called deadbeat dads. And i said i will be working to do that if i were not in the iowa senate, but you cant make that claim but that father doesnt have a claim. If the mother has anything to say, then when that child is born, you dont have claim that the father need needs save the babys life and hold the fathers. And you dont give the father any awe say. And what i didnt hear anybody say is the pain that a father goes through when the mother decides to abort the baby. I have known people who have gone through that and they were helpless. They said this is my flesh and blood. Give this baby birth and i will take care of this baby for life. When the mother says no, it is a spiteful act and i had that happened to know. But in that debate with Christian Women for choice came two things out of that. When you are tested under fire, you get to a place where the principles are tempered where they are no longer negotiable and rock solid. And now i stand before auditoriums and in schools and i will say to them, one day in your libes, you will have this question, whether it is a friend of ours and it will be the question of abortion. And i ask this question first. Is human life sacred in all of its form. And they look confused. And i say look at the friend next to you and are they looking at you and they will say our lives our sacred. If human life is sacred, is there any form of human life that is not sacred, someone who is incapable of functioning verbally or moving any way, i say yes and so do they. They have to have compassion for all human beings. Once you establish it, then i say to them, you have to ask one other question and that is at what moment does life begin . Does it begin a week after birth or the day after birth, doesnt they need to be confused. I say some them, what about that minute before the baby is born, is that life. And most of them know its life. Ill say, but how about the week before, the month before, how see sasse is born yarn and is that baby brought forward . How can that be . We take it back to the moment of conception. But the moment of conception. We get to this place where every most young person understands that human life is sacred and has to be the highest value that we have and begins at a moment and the only moment that exists is the moment of conception. Its a matter of Continual Growth and continual getting to the point where that baby is conditioned to live outside the womb and then we nurture that and all the way through the baby is conditioned where they can can take care of their own children. Thats life. And its pressure. And if you are in a family and go through the holidays, thanksgiving, christmas and new years and you watch with the joy as they interact with each other and you know there are, grandpas empty chair is gone now, he is missed. Vacancy in the chair and vacuum because they have been a huge part but they still cherish the joy they chaired. They dont accept an empty cried will for that baby that has been aborted. But that is the soul and spirit that is not there to share. Nd this nation has aborted 61 oneplus million babies. And if half of them were girls and if you look at the frequency of abortions going back to 197 and the years these women would be having babies, you would get the place not just reaching 61 million. We are not just missing 61 million but probably missing another 61 million of the babies that were never born. Add it up. Call it 120 million and here we are in this country, we have aborted a work force of 100 million and i hear over we have to have cheap foreign labor, the total fertility rates are not replacing ourselves or raising enough workers. In the iowa senate there was a bill to cover contra septembertives and the female state senators said we we are back then we are the full employment work force. Right now we are knocking on the oor of the lowest unemployment in iowa. And some of the state senators went off to the gathering and came back to this idea and they have contraceptives and heres the argument they made. They said we cant afford with this short work force, full employment work force, we cant afford to have women taking care babies. Back then, i said, who is going to do the work in the next generation . How do you fill that gap . The simple equation i had raised but their aagenda after worked opposite of it. We have to remember this nation as sinned and the abortion weighs on the conscience of a country and could have babies raised here learning our language, sharing and growing in a greater nation and the recovery of that is heavy. And even when we end this ghastly practice of aborting babies, we have a long, long ways to go to ever get back to where nature would have had it if we didnt interfere with abortion. It troubles me a great deal. Have introduced the heartbeat protection act. What it does, it protects any baby with a heartbeat. If a heart beep beat can be protected, the baby is protected. It is really that simple and requires if an abortion nist, he must first do an ultrasound, and if it produces a heartbeat, that is the First Physical sign of life in the womb, a heartbeat punish weeks into and we the abortion nist. And in the last congress we took it to 174 cosponsors. T protects every bab because because it is innocent unborn and i believe god places a soul in the moment of conception and protect all of them. And there has been discussion about exceptions for rape and incest. This bill doesnt have exceptions. We have the votes to pass it off the floor of the house a little more than a year ago and had the votes to sustain it going to the committee. We didnt get this to a markup. We had a hearing and didnt get it to markup. I fear we have failed an opportunity that we could vr sent a strong message to the senate but to the rest of america that having exceptions for rape or incest says that those babies are not precious. But i argue they are as precious to god as my own grandchildren are precious to me. From is not a distinction that is conception that comes from rape or comes from incest. In fact, they are as precious as any others. If we were to incorpt exceptions for rape and incest, we would veer exceptions where the courts would say, if there is going to be equal protection for all persons, whether born and unborn and there are exceptions for unborn persons that are the result of the act of rape or incest, then zosent the court look at that and say the equal protection clause doesnt apply and the congress didnt apply for all of the unborn. We must protect all of them, mr. Speaker. Its a memorial stand point and from a legal and annual it call standpoint and anticipation of a court that would see they are legislation, but you know the other side will, we have to make sure we are legally sound without exceptions for rape and incest. If you have incest that is taking place, if you allow abortions for incest, the Family Member that is perpetrating on the innocent young girl gets a pass each time there is an a borings. But if you prohibit abortions, you are abusing the young lady within the family. So im grateful for my colleagues that they came here and each one spoke up for passionate. We will get there one day just like dr. Martin luther king but we are going to get there. We will be a prolife nation by law and recognize these lives by the moment they are conceived within the womb. I conclude this discussion on the life issue and thank my colleagues for the work they do. I wanted to make a short comment on another circumstance thats taken place. In this congress. And it works out like this. , an a year ago last week unprecedented action took place in this congress. And that was i did an interview with the New York Times. I was misquoted in the New York Times. That quote, some people would say it was an organic, spontaneous eruption of social media and print media, i say it was an organized effort to set this up and create a railroaded firestorm against me. I knew it was going to take place and i will tell you, mr. Speaker, why i know that. That is, even though there was a nearly perfect storm created against me in the previous election and we emerged from that with a victory, after the election and before christmas of 2018, a very highly placed and respected political operative said to me, theyre going to try again. And they have chosen a messenger to go to the president and this messenger has the president s ear. The messenger is to convince the president to send out a negative tweet on me and that negative tweet suppose think is going to trigger all the worst firestorm of media assault on me that could possibly be unleashed and that they would make that try again in that way. I preempted that at the white house to the extent i could. I believe that was successful. I have no doubt that was successful. And then by january 8 of last year, i was table get a meeting with that messenger who said i would never do that to you, steve. But that also let the messenger know that i knew what the strategy was and what the attempt would be. I let them know that ill blow this thing wide open and tell the public what was going on if they made that effort. That was on the 8th of january. That sent the message through, perhaps, any planners an strategists that i knew what was up. The very next day, state senator announced he would challenge me in a primary. That was 11 23 a. M. He had no media planned. He had no website. He had no activities of any kind of evidence that he was planning to run that was at least on paper. And still he announced by twitter he was going to run against me an he was also scheduled to swear in to the next General Assembly of the iowa General Assembly the following monday, four days later. The most improbable time for anyone to announce theyre going to run in a primary against a seated member of congress was that day. But he did that that day anyway. I let the messenger know i knew what was up. The next day i get the following day the New York Times story came out and the rest is history. The New York Times story with the misquote in it. Theres no tape. Its his word against mine. He has notes, he says, he admits here is no tape, he has notice but he wont divulge even the question he would say he asked me. So i made the point here on the i had at even if if uttered those words it would have been in repetition to a question he asked me. But i often defend western civilization. I never have uttered those words, those two odious ideologies, one of them son this chrt right here. When i gave the answer that said, questioned the definition here of what is this, White Nationalism, what is it . I said it might have meant Something Different one or two or three years ago but today it implies racist. What did it mean before that . Went back to the year 2000, lexis nexis, it was virtually unused. Ill describe it because you cant see it, mr. Speaker, but all the way along here you could see virtually unused until you get to 2016. And then this term was used 10,000plus times, then 30,000, still up at 20,000 times, so 2016, 2017, 2018. I could not have been more accurate when i said it might have meant Something Different one, two, or three years ago. This was 2018. One, two, or three years ago. What did it mean here when nobody was using it . Thats a hard definition to come up with because theres not in this big dictionary other here. You cant look up two words together an find out what they mean by looking in a dictionary. Thats the annual reference, mr. Speaker. So we looked into 2016 and asked the question, when did this jump up . Well it jumped up right here in the month of november and then up there pretty high in december of 2016. What happened in november . Two things, donald trump was elected president and the democrats gathered at the mandarin Occidental Hotel and plan a strategy to prevent him from being an effective president. Then we broke the month down. Heres what we have. 14th and 15th of november, times that george soros and the democrat leaders were in the occidental, the mandarin Occidental Hotel, planning a strategy, was it a weaponization strategy of the term White Nationalism . You bet, right there. Thats what happened, mr. Speaker. So they launched that as the weaponization and used it as a weapon against me and when i stated those words here on the floor of the house of representatives, i said theres a pause between the two odious ideologies and western civilization. I made that case. And then i demonstrated that significant pause and even though we have the best stenographers, i believe, in the world, here and theyve been great for me to work with, it same t with exactly the mispunctuation that the New York Times had. I have introduced a bill called h. Res. 789, to correct the congressional record to at least reflect what the cspan video shows that what i said. Now it also demonstrates that these excellent people here can end up with that punctuation, its pretty easy to explain what happened to the New York Times. Meanwhile, there have only been four people in the history of the United States congress that have been removed from their committees. Three of them are either federal felons or confessed theyve been convicted of federal felonies or confessed to federal felonies. And me sflst not even a rule i viled. It is just simply the will and whim and the bloodlust of a political lynch mob and thats going on for over a year now today. Its going to end. Im not going to wait until this next year goes by and have to win another election and make a case. Furthermore, the term White Nationalist has never been consciously even uttered on the floor of the house of representatives since 1789 all the way up until the time that donald trump was elected president or george soros led this situation at the mandarin Occidental Hotel. This resolution 1789 is filed. Cosponsors are signing onto it. I have a an article from politico id like to introduce into the record, i ask unanimous consent to do so, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. King i thank you, mr. Speaker, i conclude my remarks and yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. Does the gentleman offer a motion to ad journ. Mr. King mr. Speaker, i move the house do now adjourn. The speaker pro tempore the question is on the motion to adjourn. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The motion is adopted. Chief justice john roberts. He will preside. Today in the house, members passed a bill that aims to protect Older Workers from discrimination. Tomorrow, debate a measure that would overturn an Education Department role on student loan forgiveness. Follow the house live on cspan when members returned thursday at 9 00 eastern. Coming up tonight on cspan, House Speaker nancy pelosi announces the senate house impeachment managers. The u. S. House on sending the articles of impeachment to the senate. Thats followed by the and grossman ceremony where speaker