[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 164 (Wednesday, September 22, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H4873-H4874]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   PRIORITIES OF THIS ADMINISTRATION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Kansas (Mr. Mann) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MANN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to discuss the priorities of 
the Biden administration because they are not good for the American 
people.
  What are the administration's priorities as outlined by the 
infrastructure package? It is not roads, bridges, highways, rail, and 
waterways. Instead, their infrastructure plan is a Trojan horse for a 
leftist wish list that will jam progressive policies like the Green New 
Deal through this Congress at the expense of actual infrastructure. 
Despite promises that this plan would be budget neutral, the CBO has 
estimated it will increase our national deficit by $256 billion.
  What are the administration's priorities as outlined in the 
reconciliation bill? It is not fairness, but partisanship. Senator 
Bernie Sanders said that under this budget no middle-income family 
would pay more in taxes. That is not true. The reconciliation bill 
includes damaging tax increases, falling largely on the shoulders of 
middle-income families, small businesses, and family farms. This bill 
would be the largest tax-and-spend measure in America's history and 
would increase public debt by more than $4.16 trillion. It would also 
allow the Federal Government to intervene even more in our daily lives 
and kill countless jobs.
  What are the administration's policies regarding ag policy? It is not 
supporting the people who feed, fuel, and clothe all of us, but 
eliminating their protections and taxing them out of their land. I 
proposed an amendment on this very issue at the House Agriculture 
Committee earlier this month that was not even considered by Democrat 
leadership. I don't want to see farmers and ranchers taxed on their 
generational property over and over again, which will destroy their 
livelihoods. This administration demands more taxes, and their party 
does what it often does and hammers rural America's middle class. 
Farmers in my district understand perfectly well that the majority 
party doesn't care about the issues they face while they work 
tirelessly to keep the breadbasket of our Nation full.
  Just yesterday, I spent 2 hours in the Ag Committee marking up a 
resolution to retroactively designate July 2021 as National Blueberry 
Month. Now, I like blueberries as much as the next guy, but I stand 
before you in disbelief that this committee would rather name a portion 
of the past after a berry than protect the future of farmers in this 
country. These are backward priorities on full display.


                       Abortion Bill is Horrible

  Mr. MANN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to voice my opposition for H.R. 
3755, which would federally legalize abortions on demand up until 
birth.
  This bill isn't just morally reprehensible. It also prohibits States 
from passing their own laws acknowledging the humanity of unborn 
children. It is a wicked path to accomplish a wicked end. This bill 
would override both Federal and State laws adopted before and even 
after its enactment. This year, 48 States have introduced a combined 
289 pro-life bills, 89 of which have been signed into law. H.R. 3755 
does not reflect the voice of the American people on the issue of 
abortion. It reflects the voice of the abortion lobby.
  This bill abolishes any law that regulates abortion in any way, 
including laws that prevent sex-selection abortion and abortions based 
on a Down syndrome diagnosis. By 12 weeks of age, babies have fully 
formed arms, hands, fingers, feet, and toes and a functional 
circulatory system and liver, and the capacity to experience

[[Page H4874]]

pain. All of this, astonishingly, at a weight of one ounce and a length 
of 4 inches. I believe that life begins at conception. I support 
adoptions, foster care, and crisis pregnancy centers. God knits every 
one of us together in our mother's wombs. Life is a miracle, and I 
believe that the right to it extends to the unborn in this country. 
That is why I strongly oppose this horrible bill.


                     Crisis at the Southern Border

  Mr. MANN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to call attention once again to 
the disastrous situation that President Biden has created at our 
southern border.
  The first priority of any administration must be to protect the 
homeland and keep Americans safe. We have brave Border Patrol agents 
putting themselves in harm's way every day doing just that; and, 
meanwhile, their calls for a complete southern border security system 
are falling on deaf ears in Washington. They know that it would make 
their jobs easier and our country safer, and the funds are already 
appropriated. Why, then, is the administration forcing these agents, 
who deserve our unwavering support, to do their jobs with anything less 
than the most comprehensive technology available?
  Across the globe from our southern border lies Afghanistan, where 
there exists yet another disastrous situation President Biden created. 
Make no mistake, the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban is not an 
isolated problem in a land far, far away. The Taliban could 
redistribute their terrorists across the world in a matter of days, and 
our southern border is about as secure as a welcome mat, inviting 
terrorists who hate America to come and set up shop. President Biden 
didn't just torpedo the stability of Afghanistan last month, he also 
put Americans in danger, which highlights yet another need to address 
the southern border crisis immediately.

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