[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 132 (Monday, July 27, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H3863]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OF THE LEFTIST MOB

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Arrington) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ARRINGTON. Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Pennsylvania 
responsibly and carefully sanitized the podium up here before I began 
my 5-minute remarks, but I will tell you that there is not enough 
disinfectant in all of the District of Columbia to sanitize this 
Chamber on account of my Democrat colleagues who fail to condemn what 
has been going on in what once were great American cities throughout 
this Nation. It is shameful, Mr. Speaker.
  Leaders are elected to this great body with its history and with the 
full confidence of the American people that we will call evil by its 
name. But they sit idly by and are complicit in their silence and do 
not condemn the chaos, the destruction, the violence, the crimes, and 
the terrorism that is ravaging our Nation.
  As we speak and as we sit in this quiet and peaceful Chamber, there 
are citizens--our fellow Americans--who feel that their lives and their 
private property are threatened. They can't even bear arms with their 
constitutional right to protect themselves and their property without 
being prosecuted by some rogue city attorney.

  We have got to stand up to this mob. We have to say: No more will you 
burn our cities; no more will you terrorize our communities and 
intimidate and use fear to squelch any attempt by our local leaders to 
stop this now.
  But they are intimidated, Mr. Speaker. The local leaders have 
completely bowed the knee to these leftist extremist groups that have 
hijacked peaceful protest.
  There are folks with righteous indignation who have taken to the 
streets to speak their truth to power, and I respect that. God bless 
them. That is the American way.
  We just celebrated one of the greatest who demonstrated peacefully 
and, through love for his country and his fellow man, made more 
difference than 1 million mobs could have. His name is John Lewis, and 
I am honored to have served with him.
  But what is happening right now is these local leaders are either 
unwilling or incapable of stopping it. This weekend was 2 months of 
persistence in this violence and in the crimes perpetrated against 
Federal officers and local law enforcement who have been hamstrung to 
even defend themselves, let alone the property that they have been 
asked by their ``courageous leaders'' to defend. They are getting 
fireworks shot off in their face.
  Where are the city leaders?
  Where is Mr. Biden? He is safe in his basement. That is courageous 
leadership? That is what America needs right now?
  Criticize President Trump all you want. He is at least doing 
something to stand up to the mob and protect taxpayers' Federal 
property.
  Our Federal law enforcement officers are doing their job faithfully 
and dutifully while our citizens' rights are being completely trampled. 
There is no pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness in these cities. 
They are burning.
  Protesters in California set fire to a courthouse, damaged police 
stations, and assaulted officers, ABC says: ``in peaceful 
demonstrations that have intensified.''
  Are you kidding me? In Texas, we call it bull with the end of that 
word with a T.
  Mr. Speaker, you know it. You know that these things are happening, 
and they wouldn't happen in parts of Texas because the citizens would 
not allow it.
  What do we do with fireworks, broken windows, spray paint, and lasers 
being shot at them?
  Seattle experienced an antipolice riot where 59 police officers were 
injured by arson, vandalism, and assault. I have got the list of 
Federal crimes right here. These people ought to be prosecuted to the 
fullest extent of the law. They should be locked up away from the 
citizens who are just trying to live out their lives in this great 
Nation.
  These are the Federal crimes: advocating to overthrow the government, 
aggravated assault and battery, arson, assault with a deadly weapon, 
attempting to kill an officer, conspiracy to impede or injure an 
officer, and demands against the U.S.
  This is domestic terrorism as defined by the statutes that we stand 
on and that we have debated. They say that domestic terrorism is 
violent crimes.
  Mr. Speaker, I am going to respect that you gaveled me out because I 
respect the rules of this Chamber, so I thank you for the indulgence.

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