[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 190 (Wednesday, December 7, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H8813-H8818]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   REPUBLICAN CONTROL WILL PROVIDE ACCOUNTABILITY AND PRODUCE RESULTS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick).
  Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 4, 2021, the 
gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson) is recognized for 60 minutes as 
the designee of the minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that 
all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my Special 
Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Louisiana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my friends 
for joining us on the floor tonight at this late hour. It has been a 
long day on Capitol Hill, but there are things that need to be said 
here.
  It is December again, and of course that means that we are in the 
homestretch of a new Congress, this Congress, the 117th. The 
homestretch of any Congress, as we know, is when the threat of bad 
legislating is at its most pronounced. We have certainly seen all that 
here this week.

  Government appropriations have been taken hostage by Democrats who 
want to spend even more. They seem to have forgotten about the 
trillions of dollars that have already been spent earlier this year.
  The NDAA has been taken hostage just today by Democrats who think the 
right to vote is under some sort of secret threat. I guess they didn't 
pay attention to the massive voter turnout in Georgia just yesterday.
  Here tonight, they rushed through a rule to codify same-sex marriage 
and create a private right of action that will vilify and supercharge 
attacks on people of faith.
  Madam Speaker, this lame duck session is doing serious and lasting 
harm to our Republic, and I guess it is a fitting end to this--what 
really has been a disastrous Congress overall under Democrat rule. We 
have with trillions upon trillions in government spending, sending 
inflation for all American families soaring.
  We have had votes on immensely consequential, complex, thousand-plus-
page bills, handed to us just hours before those votes. We have had 
Members dial into congressional hearings from their bedrooms and 
basements and even while on vacation in Europe--proxy voting. 
Thankfully, this is all about to come to an end, mercifully in less 
than a month.
  The American people have spoken and the American people have given 
Republicans control of this body to provide accountability and produce 
results.
  Madam Speaker, this is a legislative body and it is high time for 
this body to get back to the work that we are supposed to be doing for 
the American people. Come January, that is exactly what we intend to 
do.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues for joining us here today to 
talk about all of it.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the great State of 
Tennessee (Mr. Rose).
  Mr. ROSE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Louisiana for 
yielding and for claiming the time this evening.
  Madam Speaker, in 27 days, adherence to the constitutional principles 
will be returned to this institution.
  In 27 days, accountability will be returned to our government.
  In 27 days, Republicans will take the majority in this Chamber, 
secure the committee gavels, and begin the long climb to deliver a 
strong economy, a safe Nation, a free future, and an accountable 
government.
  I say ``the long climb'' because over the course of the last 2 years 
of one-party Democratic rule in Washington, America has lost its way. 
We have seen trillions of hard-earned tax dollars and trillions 
borrowed from the next generation wasted. We have seen our national 
border overrun with millions of illegal immigrants and enough illicit 
and deadly fentanyl to kill every American many times over.
  After decades of trying, America finally successfully achieved energy 
independence under the Trump administration. But in 2 years we have 
seen this country driven back into the ditch of energy dependence on 
foreign dictators and the high energy prices that come with it.
  We have seen the funding of an army of 87,000 new IRS agents to go 
after the middle-class, working Americans in this country, catastrophic 
failures in Afghanistan and elsewhere around the world, and a justice 
system targeting concerned parents, vaccine mandates damaging our 
military readiness, unelected bureaucrats run amok in virtue signaling, 
and Big Tech in cahoots with our government to stifle free speech for 
half of the American citizenry.
  That is a mind-boggling amount of damage over 2 short years, and even 
a strong Nation like America can only take so much. But, thankfully, 
the turnaround begins on January 3, 2023, when Republicans retake the 
majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
  All of these issues are vitally important to the good folks back in 
my home of middle Tennessee. But I truly believe no issue is more 
important than that of the right to free speech. George Washington 
said, ``If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may 
be led, like sheep to the slaughter.''
  We recently learned that Twitter colluded with the Biden campaign and 
allegedly the FBI to suppress damaging information to President Biden's 
campaign. This only makes me wonder:
  What else are these Big Tech companies hiding?
  Soon enough, we will be able to find out.
  Additionally, Securities and Exchange Commissioner Gary Gensler 
appears to be on a mission to destroy our small farms and businesses. 
He failed to provide proper oversight of crypto companies while cozying 
up to the biggest crypto fraud of the last decade, all while not 
appearing before the House Financial Services Committee in over 428 
days.
  Proper oversight will be on its way in 27 days.
  Madam Speaker, for too long unelected bureaucrats have not had to 
answer to the American people. Make no mistake: no stone will go 
unturned in order to deliver the accountability the American people 
truly deserve.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend. That is 
so well said. There are so many issues to cover.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess).
  Mr. BURGESS. Madam Speaker, he so quite correctly outlined some of 
the difficulties facing Congress as we get to this end-of-the-year 
crunch of legislation that has to pass before the end of the year.
  There is no place where this is more pronounced than for our Nation's 
doctors. The very people that we asked to get us through the pandemic, 
the very people that we have asked to take care of us. And now we 
arrive at the end of this Congress, and we say: Thank you for your 
service, here is your pay cut. And they go: Wait, what? A paycheck.
  The Surgeon General came to the Doctors Caucus earlier this year and 
said he is concerned. He goes around and talks to doctors all over the 
country, he is concerned about the level of burnout that he is seeing 
in the Nation's physicians. He said he has never seen this before.

  It really should not be a surprise. You work doctors and nurses day 
and night during the pandemic, and then

[[Page H8814]]

you turn around and say, You know what, we don't value what you do. The 
evidence for that is right as we barrel into the end of the year, there 
are significant cuts to the physician fee schedule, sequesters, paygo, 
budget neutrality requirements that in aggregate spell about an 8 to 9 
percent reduction in payments for physicians.
  For years, I fought to repeal the sustainable growth rate formula. 
The sustainable growth rate formula was repealed in 2015. I thought, 
hallelujah, we won't spend every December having to worry about how to 
make our doctors whole because the formula has gone away.
  But now through administrative actions and through budgetary 
requirements, doctors are facing these pay cuts. So here we are in 
another December trying to scramble together a doc fix so our doctors 
can remain in practice.
  But what makes this year so different and what makes this year so 
devastating to the Nation's doctors is on top of the 8 to 9 percent 
cuts in Medicare, they are facing 8 to 9 percent inflation. Nowhere 
else in the Federal Government could you say, Hey, we are going to hold 
you at level funding and not take into account the fact that the cost 
of living adjustment--it would be a pay cut anywhere else.
  Well, I will tell you this, it is a pay cut in your doctor's office, 
and they are feeling it. The aggregate weight of these pay cuts is 
going to be such that we will drive doctors out of practice. I hear 
from docs all the time that they are going to have to close up shop.
  What does that mean? It means further consolidation within the 
healthcare industry. It means further hospital zoning physician 
practices, private equity-only physician practices because we just 
can't keep up with what the government is doing to us.
  Now, there is a chance that something will happen before the end of 
this year and stop these cuts before they are administered. But I will 
tell you this, in the new Congress--in the next Congress--it is my 
intention that we have to be very serious about tackling this problem 
in our authorizing committees.
  Madam Speaker, I am on the Committee of Energy and Commerce, I expect 
that very early in the year we will be intentional about fixing this 
problem because we can't find ourselves here in December of another 
year where our docs are saying, We are at the end of our ropes, and we 
just can't take it anymore.
  This is a serious problem; it needs to be fixed. President Biden 
would talk about, Hey, Republicans, they are going to cut your Social 
Security and Medicare.
  Well, Mr. President, you know who is cutting Medicare right now?
  You are. It is your agency, and you won't stop it. Next Congress, 
Republicans will.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the doctor for 
highlighting that. It is such an important issue, and just one more 
example of so much that has gone wrong here.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. 
Burchett).
  Mr. BURCHETT. Madam Speaker, I rise tonight to talk about 
immigration. The Democrats and the mainstream media need to take 
responsibility for their cover-up of President Biden's border crisis.
  The liberal media hasn't made a peep about the fact that over 4 
million illegals have been encountered at our southern border since 
President Biden took office. That is a record number, Madam Speaker, 4 
million people. We have never seen this before.
  They also kept the Biden administration's dirty little secret when it 
started flying illegals into Knoxville, Chattanooga, and all over the 
country in the dead of night without telling anyone, without telling 
the State authorities, and definitely not telling the Congressman from 
the Second Congressional District about it.
  But then the media had a field day when Republican Governors sent a 
few buses of illegals to New York and Martha's Vineyard. I kept waiting 
for one of them to say, Buffy, quick, we have got illegals out here.
  This administration is trying to keep us focused on things like 
climate change and woke social programs instead of their disastrous 
handling of our southern border. Of course, the media follows the 
Democrats' lead like a lost puppy dog. They cover what the Democrats 
want them to cover, and it is a shameful way to do journalism--a once 
respectable occupation.

                              {time}  2030

  It is a disgusting cover up of a very simple truth. We desperately 
need to close the dadgum border, Madam Speaker, and strengthen our 
immigration laws.
  We need to reform our asylum system, which is a total joke, so 
illegal immigrants aren't eligible if they travel through a safe third 
country. We need to clarify in our laws that gang and domestic violence 
are not grounds for asylum; those are grounds for moving neighborhoods, 
not moving countries, Madam Speaker.
  We also need to fully implement some policies like the Remain in 
Mexico policy, which is a reasonable policy, and which is critical to 
our national security, Madam Speaker.
  Our liberal media need to stop kowtowing to the Democrats and start 
reporting on the facts. The American people deserve to know what is 
going on. And I guarantee you, the more they know, the more they will 
demand these kind of real changes from the disastrous Biden 
administration.
  Madam Speaker, I thank Chairman Johnson for his more-than-lackluster 
attempt at democracy tonight. I, for one, enjoy it, and these young 
people over here seem to be enjoying it themselves, all five of those 
young people.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I really do have the honor 
to yield next to a friend and colleague who will be retiring at the end 
of this Congress.
  Since 2005, he has represented the dozen counties stretching nearly 
120 miles down Texas' eastern border with Louisiana. I represent one of 
his neighboring districts over that border; and in our region and, in 
fact, I can say nationwide, Congressman Louie Gohmert is a household 
name.
  Prior to his election to Congress 9 terms ago, he served as a 
district judge in Texas, and Chief Justice of the Twelfth Court of 
Appeals of Texas. He is also a captain in the U.S. Army. He served our 
Nation bravely.
  Judge Gohmert has been a bold defender of America's founding 
principles his entire life and career; and whether he is leading a 
debate in our House Judiciary Committee, or in the Natural Resources 
Committee, or setting the example for all of us with his tireless 
advocacy here on this House floor, Louie Gohmert has been a consummate 
servant for the people and for our great Nation.
  Madam Speaker, I am happy to yield to the gentleman from the great 
State of Texas (Mr. Gohmert), my friend and my colleague.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Louisiana for his 
kind comments. The truth is, he is one of the reasons I am comfortable 
leaving.
  There have been times when I was extremely concerned about people 
standing up for what is right; whether it was standing up to our own 
leadership or leadership of the country, including the White House, 
leadership of our own party, or the other party. But I have been 
encouraged; that is why I was willing to take a big chance on running 
for office statewide, even though I got in so late.
  That was a matter that I will not be able to save Texas from 
suffering; but I have got great comfort here.
  What does concern me greatly about our country, I think the bill that 
was just--we took up the rule on just now, concerns me.
  As I know my brother,   Mike Johnson, knows and believes, as one of 
the leaders I know here on the floor, Moses, we believe, got word 
directly from God, and Moses passed that on, saying that a man shall 
leave his father and mother and a woman leave her home and the two will 
become one.
  When Jesus was asked a question about marriage and divorce, he quoted 
Moses verbatim. Jesus, of course, some people say, was a great teacher, 
taught a lot of great things. But as C.S. Lewis pointed out, he said he 
was God. He said he was one on with the Father. He said so many things 
like that, it is very clear, he didn't have a choice to say he was a 
good teacher because he was either a liar, a lunatic, or he was Lord, 
as he said.
  But the Founders, the huge majority of the Founders were not only 
believers

[[Page H8815]]

in what Moses and Jesus taught, but they were strong practicing 
Christians.
  Nowadays, school children are taught, Ben Franklin was a deist, 
someone who believes, basically, that some deity, something, some 
force, created the universe, and if that deity, thing, force, whatever, 
still exists today, it never interferes with the ways of men.
  But if you go back to the Constitutional Convention, Ben Franklin 
gave a speech when things looked like they had come to an end; they 
were going to go no further. There was so much yelling and 
disagreement.
  Ben Franklin was recognized by the President of the Convention, 
President George Washington, and he pointed out that they had had so 
much disagreement over everything, and he said--he pointed back to the 
Continental Congress, and he said: In the beginning contest with Great 
Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayer in this 
room. Our prayers, sir, were heard and they were graciously answered.
  That is not a deist saying those things. But he went on to say--and 
these are His words. We know because the speech was so profound others 
there asked him for a copy, and he sat down and wrote the speech and 
everybody that heard it looked and said, yeah, that is exactly what he 
said.
  He went on to say, we know: I have lived, sir, a long time, and the 
longer I live the more convincing proofs I see of this truth. God 
governs in the affairs of men; and if a sparrow cannot fall to the 
ground without his notice, is it possible a nation could rise without 
his aid?
  He said: We have been assured, sir, in the sacred writing, that a 
nation cannot rise without his aid; a home will not rise without his 
aid. And he assured that this nation could not be built without his 
aid.
  In this book, ``Wall of Misconception,'' by Pastor Emeritus, former 
head of the Presbyterian Seminary in Philadelphia, Peter Lillback, a 
great historian, he points out that President Washington, in his first 
inaugural address, frequently referred to the Almighty. His very first 
act as President was to pray. Washington prayed that God would secure 
the liberties of the new Nation.

  He went on to say that no one should be more grateful to God than the 
people of the United States of America in light of what God had done 
for them throughout the war. Although the new nation had just gone 
through the tumultuous time after the revolution of creating a new 
civil government, the process fraught with sectional rivalries and 
tensions was accomplished in a peacefully unique way that called for 
pious gratitude--those were his words--since this implied even more 
divine blessings to come.
  The implication Washington drew from all of this was that America 
could not expect the continuing ``smiles of heaven'' if the eternal 
rules of order and right which heaven itself has ordained were 
disregarded.
  We must remember that when Washington attended the Anglican churches 
of his day, he, along with the congregation, recited the Ten 
Commandments from the list behind the altar.
  In Washington's historical context, ``the eternal rules of order and 
right which heaven itself has ordained'' could only refer to the Ten 
Commandments, given that this was the belief of almost every American 
in Washington's day who read or heard his inaugural address.
  Along with his solemn inaugural address that graced America's first 
auspicious pageant of civil religion, Washington's inauguration 
contributed other religious precedents.
  He was sworn in as President with the use of the Bible. This Bible 
has been sacredly kept by the Masons of New York City. The page where 
Washington placed his hand for the oath of office was marked by the 
turning down of the corner of the page. Interestingly, the marked page 
is Genesis 49, the chapter where Jacob, the father of the sons of 
Israel, bestows his blessings upon them.
  By this time, Washington had long been called the ``Father of His 
Country''. The parallel of the text in the inauguration was not 
accidental.
  Tradition has that he said, so help me God. That was not a written 
part of the oath. Then he bent down and he kissed the Bible.
  But the religious elements of Washington's inauguration were still 
not complete. Next, he led the Congressmen and everyone else across the 
street from Federal Hall to St. Paul's Chapel for a 2-hour service of 
Christian worship to commit the new nation to God.
  According to Mrs. Alexander Hamilton, she knelt with President 
Washington as they received the Eucharist together. This is part of our 
history. That was the very beginning.
  It is interesting to note, as Jonathan Cahn did, that on 9/11, the 
one building that was considered part of Ground Zero was not broken, 
cracked, damaged whatsoever, was that very St. Paul's Chapel, where our 
Nation was committed to God during that period in which all of the 
Members of Congress, the President, Vice President Adams, they were all 
there participating in that time of prayer and committing this Nation 
to God, to the Almighty.
  On visiting there, I was informed that the graveyard that is right 
behind the chapel on the side facing the Twin Towers, that when they 
fell, a huge tree, sycamore tree, at the back of the cemetery was 
completely uprooted. Jonathan Cahn pointed this out.
  But there, the proprietor, the caretaker said that tree fell across 
all those graves and not one gravestone was cracked, broken, harmed in 
any way, nor was the chapel, not even a window cracked. It was seen to 
be a miracle the way that building where our Nation was first committed 
to God was so very protected. Amazing, the history.
  I know that there have been civilizations throughout history that 
have recognized same-sex union. But if you do enough digging, you find 
that when it came to actual marriage, that that was considered part of 
having children and a family, as God had said, go forth and multiply. 
That was considered--marriage was considered for having children and 
building a family.
  Yes, of course, you can build a wonderful family by adoption. Now we 
are told that men can get pregnant. We wonder, you know, with the 
incredible advances of medicine, just how much man will take on the 
role of being his own God. It is a very dangerous thing because every 
time a nation has gotten to that point, they didn't last much longer.

                              {time}  2045

  If you want to attribute that to just nature or nature's God, as our 
Founders did, then you have your choice, but it did not bode well for 
such a Nation.
  Now, back when the United States was a majority, a vast majority, of 
strong Christians, leaders of the country could appeal to the Judeo-
Christian beliefs and the teachings of Moses, of the prophets, of Jesus 
and the apostles in the New Testament. Those things could be appealed 
to in the hearts of most Americans, and they would find great 
reception.
  Now, the polls, studies, and surveys indicate that a majority of 
Americans do not attend church and do not seem to believe in a loving 
God. The appeals, therefore, of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 
an ordained Christian pastor, who appealed to the better nature in 
America, that love was stronger than hate, and love could overcome 
hate, and love would bring the Nation together.
  But since there are so few now, most don't seem to have a common 
agreement about the Judeo-Christian teaching that once overwhelmed the 
Nation at a time early on, when Harvard was established, Yale was 
established, basically to teach Christianity and educate people for a 
great future.
  In fact, if you go back and look at the pledge that students had to 
make about their devotion to Jesus Christ, it is really staggering. But 
that is how things were started. That was an amazing start for this 
country.
  Only a country that had turned its back on the teachings of Dr. King 
and the person that Dr. King called his Lord and Savior could become so 
hypocritical as we have as a Nation. We think, too often, we are God; 
we know better than God; we know better than Moses.
  I expect sometime that his bust depicted in the middle of this 
Chamber as the greatest lawgiver of all time, somebody will complain 
that needs to be taken down. Never mind the fact that

[[Page H8816]]

there are great lawgivers, like Hammurabi. Some have been talking about 
the Code of Hammurabi and the Justinian code. Those are people who are 
up there.
  Most people are not aware Napoleon was a lawgiver through the 
Napoleonic Code. Thomas Jefferson is up there. People hopefully are 
aware he was not at the Constitutional Convention; he was representing 
us in Europe. But he did help with the Northwest Ordinances and was in 
Virginia. He helped with laws that became a helpful framework for our 
Constitution and our laws.
  Democrats preach long and loud that George W. Bush was not a 
legitimate President, that he stole the election of 2000 and stole the 
election of 2004. For that reason, they then objected to his election 
on the House floor on January 6 not of 2021 but of 2001. Then there was 
objection on this floor January 6 of 2005.
  Although we sat here and waited for our chance to vote on the 
counting of the electors, no one in here realized that, according to so 
many Democrats today, when you object to electors, you are an election 
denier, treasonous, and guilty of sedition. None of us suspected that 
at the time that objections were made on the other side of the aisle.
  In fact, on January 6, 2017, when we had 11 different objections from 
Democrats saying that Trump stole the election, we didn't realize that, 
according to the Democrats, the Democrats that objected were guilty of 
treason and sedition and that they should really be run out of public 
altogether and should not be allowed to participate in government. In 
fact, they shouldn't be allowed to actually be seen out in public. It 
was so despicable that their neighbors should reject them and run them 
out of the neighborhood.
  None of us on this side of the aisle--I remember--in 2005 and 2017, 
we didn't realize what the Democrats are now telling us, that those 
were acts of sedition and that they were showing themselves to be 
election deniers. We thought that because the Democrats were following 
the procedures that were set out in the Constitution, they were 
following their beliefs and their constitutional rights. We didn't 
dream that they were committing sedition and treason, as they are now 
saying that apparently they were doing.
  It was shocking to me that Democrats were alleging that Donald Trump 
stole that election and that he stole it with the help of collusion 
with Russia. We heard those claims. It took a while longer, after a 
multimillion-dollar investigation that found nothing of the sort. Gee, 
it turns out, as the investigation has gone on, that actually the 
Democratic National Committee, the Clinton campaign, members of the 
FBI, members of the DOJ, and the intel community were working in 
conjunction first to prevent Donald Trump from getting elected and then 
also working after he was elected to have him removed from office.
  Now, most of us were upset on this side of the aisle with the 
continued, ongoing, never-ending efforts to remove Donald Trump from 
the office to which he was duly elected. But we didn't realize that the 
Democrats' actions, according to their explanations now, amounted to 
sedition, treason, a coup d'etat, and all of these other things we have 
heard in the last 2 years.
  It is shocking because I don't know of anybody on our side of the 
aisle who realized that what was going on, on the other side of the 
aisle, was actually an attempted coup and seditionist treason. We 
didn't realize that because we hadn't heard from the Democrats until 
the last 2 years that to raise such issues was exactly what they were 
saying.
  Now, they have even hypocritically turned to the government, 
billionaire businesses, banks, and individuals to get them to go 
against Republicans and start letting some Republicans, like the 
President of the United States, know: ``We don't like your politics, 
and we will never allow you to do business with our banks and our 
businesses. We are going to try to break you, bankrupt you.'' We didn't 
realize that those were helpful things to do on behalf of our Nation.
  I don't think they are indicative of what Dr. King, the reverend that 
he was--he had studied the Bible. He had even studied Gandhi's life and 
how peace was the way to make progress, peaceful protest. He preached 
against going after your enemies, going after your opponents, trying to 
destroy them. He preached what he knew, and that was Christian love.

  But what we have illustrated here is a Nation that has turned from 
God and, to borrow from Longfellow, to allow hate in this country to be 
strong and mock the song of peace on Earth, goodwill toward men.
  Overall, this Nation was one in which the people could be appealed to 
on the basis of a loving God who through, we believe, the Savior 
pointed out the two most important commands, to love God and love each 
other, and on those two hang all the law, all the prophets.
  Actually, if you were to do an outline and put love God and love your 
neighbor, you can put all the laws from the Ten Commandments and most 
laws today under one of those two.
  We have been so blessed in this country. Our Founders, nearly all of 
them, believed it was because they were trying to pursue freedom.
  Historically, as an old history major, as somebody who has never 
stopped reading and learning history, we look back, as so many 
historians have, at the American Revolution. Many believe that the 
American Revolution came about because of the great Christian awakening 
that occurred in the 1700s, when most of the Nation repented of sins, 
of wrongdoing, and asked for forgiveness. What grew was a love of 
liberty and a love of freedom.
  Historians have looked back and said, wow, that war ended, and it 
ended in the Treaty of Paris, 1783. I was surprised to see an exact 
duplicate of the Treaty of Paris, 1783, because of the huge words that 
started the Treaty of Paris. I did not realize that they were so big, 
and I didn't realize that is how it started. But if you think about 
making a treaty with the biggest, most powerful country in the world in 
1783, what would you put on the document to scare Great Britain, with 
the biggest Army, biggest Navy, what would you start it with to make 
them afraid to break their oath? Well, the Founders started with the 
huge words: ``In the name of the most Holy and undivided Trinity,'' 
Trinity talking about the Father, Son, Holy Ghost. ``In the name of the 
most Holy and undivided trinity,'' that is how that started.
  They thought that is powerful enough that even the British will be 
afraid to break that oath. That is what they signed.

                              {time}  2100

  Others pointed out that, in the 1800s, there was a great awakening, 
and that same yearning and love of freedom led so many to say that 
slavery must end, that we cannot continue.
  Actually, Thomas Jefferson, of all people, put that as the biggest 
grievance in the Declaration of Independence, that King George ever 
allowed slavery to begin. Those who would say that the Nation started 
with slavery; no, Jefferson said it started in spite of it, that it was 
a blight on this country, and blamed King George for ever allowing it 
because it was damaging the country and would damage the country.
  But in the 1800s, after the Nation's second great Christian 
awakening, we had a Civil War, and 500,000 Americans were lost, 500,000 
casualties lost in that fight, but we emerged stronger out of it.
  It took a while, but there were people who had the love Lincoln had 
developed. He started out in his twenties bragging that he was an 
atheist, but by the time he was President, as Stephen Mansfield points 
out in his book, ``Lincoln's Battle with God,'' he knew there was a 
God. He knew God was at work, and he knew that they should have love 
for people even with whom they disagreed.
  But our country has abandoned the teachings of Moses, of Jesus, of 
Dr. King. I have idolized the ``I Have a Dream'' speech for nearly all 
of my life. It is so profound. It provokes tears. It is so powerful.
  But that part of the dream where people would be judged by the 
content of their character and not the color of their skin, we were so 
close. Now, this country has been fundamentally transformed, and, now, 
teachers are telling children to judge people by their skin color.
  What has gone on? We have colleges that say that they are so 
omniscient that they know the way to go is to have segregated 
dormitories.

[[Page H8817]]

  What happened to the dream? It has turned into a nightmare. How could 
this happen? Perhaps if there was a third great awakening, many 
believe, we could get back on track.
  Why was the American Revolution successful? We didn't kill a lot of 
people after the American Revolution. We signed a peace treaty. We 
asked them to leave us alone, and we would leave them alone. So, why 
did the French Revolution end up with--you can find, I have seen 
estimates, some people say as few as 13,000 heads cut off with a 
guillotine. Some say 44,000 heads chopped off.
  We didn't have that after the American Revolution. Why was that? Some 
historians say because ours was about love of freedom and liberty, as 
the Bible taught, and the French Revolution was about a love for 
revenge. We are seeing that vengefulness play out.
  There is nothing wrong with disagreeing. As the preacher said--and I 
know in the 1960s Lyndon Johnson was given credit, but Dr. L.L. Morris 
said it back around 1950 before I was born, said it to my parents: If 
two people agree on everything, one of them is unnecessary.
  I have said that in deacons meetings at our church when people say we 
all ought to have exactly the same idea. No, it is good--since we are 
all human, nobody is perfect, and nobody has 100 percent lock on God's 
wisdom--that we exchange ideas, and we argue. It is okay to argue.
  When I talk about a battle, I am talking about a battle of words. 
Some people in here are unarmed in a battle of words, and some are 
quite armed in a battle of words. But that is a good, healthy thing, to 
disagree. Otherwise, we would only need one dictator.
  I am afraid we have been moving in that direction. So many of the 
things Orwell talked about are happening. We have people on the other 
side of the aisle who basically want a ministry of truth that will 
write down what the truth is, and anybody that disagrees with that will 
be guilty of a crime.
  I haven't heard anybody on the other side of the aisle talk about the 
enforcement mechanism. That was called the ministry of love. They would 
pick you up, torture you, and keep you in the basement of the ministry 
of love, torturing days, weeks, years, whatever it took until you would 
repeat whatever they told you was the truth. It is the kind of thing 
that would kill a Galileo for saying that Earth was not the center of 
our solar system.
  We need to have open minds, but it is important to learn from history 
because when you don't--everybody knows the saying--you are destined to 
repeat it.
  We have a chance, and I believe with all my heart that it is because 
God is a merciful God. He has been mocked. We have his name right up 
here: In God We Trust. I know lots of people have been trying to get 
that down, but it is still there, and I know it will still be there for 
the next 2 years.
  But we have to get over this thing of being vengeful. Even Federal 
judges here regarding January 6, like I have said before, people that 
committed violent acts, people that did destructive acts to this 
building, they deserve to be severely punished, but there were some 
that walked into the building and seemed to be welcomed. People say 
they are terrorists, and Federal judges have called them all kinds of 
names, called them seditionists, called them all kinds of things when 
they weren't rioting. Some were, and they need to be punished, and they 
have been.

  But to have Federal judges throw the Constitution out the window and 
say: I haven't heard the evidence, but you are a seditionist, and you 
are dangerous. We need to make sure you are punished. You are a threat 
to the country--when there was no evidence of that for the individual 
before the judge.
  The gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson), one of the great 
constitutional scholars in this body, and my friend, he really does 
understand the Constitution. One of the things I hope happens is that 
we will start subpoenaing judges. We impeached two Federal judges early 
on when I was here. It is time to bring them in and find out if there 
is a basis for impeaching them.
  Are they going to continue to want to punish people in pretrial 
confinement, even though that is unconstitutional?
  Are they going to continue to judge people and issue rulings when 
there is no evidence whatsoever on which to base the vile things they 
are saying about the individuals before them?
  We need to know because if they are going to continue to be like 
Judge Roy Bean in his courtroom, which too many Federal judges are 
these days, it is time to stop it. Make them accountable. Let them know 
that there are checks and balances, and they are not God.
  They took an oath, and they will be judged by that oath. If they are 
not following it, remove them. I hope that will happen, a shot across 
the bow.
  I am grateful to have served in this body. I was hoping that, when I 
left, I would feel confident that our freedom was preserved for the 
next generations, at least the next one or two. I don't know. I see too 
many disturbing issues.

                              {time}  2110

  But I believe God is merciful, and he has given us a chance. I will 
be hopeful, and I will be praying for my colleagues that will be here 
next year. Let's get back on track. Let's don't do things out of hate. 
Let's don't do things out of revenge. Let's do things for a love of 
freedom so we don't have 44,000 people get their heads chopped off 
because people were overwhelmed and just insatiable wanting revenge.
  I am very grateful to my friend for yielding to me today. He is a 
true--I started to say ``patriot,'' but I know some judge chastised 
someone for being a patriot; wanted to punish him more heavily.
  So, hopefully, we can get back to a day when loving the country 
patriotically is a good thing.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for his 
comments. He has been a great example for that, and that was a fitting 
end to a long career and a lot of hours here on this floor articulating 
the truth and standing for America's founding principles.
  Madam Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Louisiana has 7 minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman 
from Tennessee (Mr. Kustoff), another good friend, colleague, and a 
patriot.


                     Recognizing A. Keith McDonald

  Mr. KUSTOFF. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize a really close friend of 
mine and a strong leader for Bartlett, Tennessee, A. Keith McDonald.
  After serving as the mayor of Bartlett for 20 years, Keith McDonald 
has decided it is time for a well-earned retirement.
  Keith has dedicated his entire life to the betterment of our 
community in west Tennessee.
  He is a graduate of Clarksville High School, Freed-Hardeman 
University, and the University of Memphis.
  As a young insurance agent, Keith played an instrumental role in 
forming today's Bartlett Chamber of Commerce and also developing its 
industrial park.
  Now, prior to his government service, Keith traveled to Japan to help 
recruit brother industries to invest in Bartlett as the anchor tenant 
of that park.
  Keith decided to further give to his community when he joined local 
government. So, in October of 2017, Keith became an alderman for the 
city of Bartlett and was elected its mayor in 2002.
  There have been so many accomplishments during Keith's tenure as 
mayor during the past 20 years. Perhaps the most significant is Keith's 
leadership in creating and establishing the Bartlett City School 
System.
  Now in its ninth year, the school system has further demonstrated 
that Bartlett is a great place to not only operate a business, but also 
educate children and raise families. None of it would have happened 
without Keith McDonald's drive and determination.
  I talked with Keith's son, Brooks, about his father's life and 
career. Brooks told me that at home Keith taught his children about 
what Keith called the 80/20 rule, and that is that 20 percent of the 
people do 80 percent of the work. It is a lesson that Brooks has never 
forgotten and that Keith has continuously demonstrated both in his 
faith and in his community and in his family.

[[Page H8818]]

  Now, speaking of his family, that is what is most important to Keith. 
Whether it was leading his son's PTA groups or serving as their Scout 
leader, Keith has always been that strong and loving father for Brooks 
and for Ryan.
  Without a doubt, the city of Bartlett will certainly miss Keith 
McDonald's vision and leadership.
  To Brooks and Ryan, I know that you are proud of your father's public 
service. To Keith's wife and his partner, Patty, we thank you for the 
years that you have given and all that you have given over these last 
20 years.
  Roberta and I wish Keith and his family the best as his public 
service concludes over the next few days. To Keith, job well done.
  I thank the gentleman for yielding his time and for leading this 
Special Order hour tonight.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 
fitting into the hour and honoring Mayor Keith McDonald. He sounds like 
a faithful public servant and one I wish I had the pleasure of knowing. 
We commend him on his long public service, and it is fitting that we do 
that on the night that we are bidding farewell soon to our friend and 
colleague, Congressman Louie Gohmert, as well.
  These are the kind of faithful public servants that the Founding 
Fathers had in mind, that they would serve selflessly for a long tenure 
and give themselves to their community.
  Madam Speaker, I know the clock has wound up and I am out of time, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________