[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 194 (Wednesday, December 14, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H9736]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS ON CAMPUS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Virginia (Ms. FOXX) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, freedom of speech and thought on college 
campuses is essential to one of the most important missions of the 
university: the search for truth.
  While censorship can come from the right or left, many colleges and 
universities are now zealously devoted to advancing leftwing ideas and 
are willing to disregard evidence and logic to do it.
  Universities should be a marketplace of ideas, not temples to a 
single political dogma. When students or faculty speak out against 
established norms, they are canceled, fired, or otherwise stigmatized 
by peers and university administrators.
  This is not what our Founding Fathers intended for our country or for 
our universities. Thomas Jefferson, who founded the University of 
Virginia, once wrote: ``I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal 
hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.''
  Universities used to promote this sentiment, but things have 
changed--and not for the better. Universities should be centers of 
education, not indoctrination. Yet university leaders either brazenly 
push their own agenda or walk on eggshells in fear of their own student 
body.
  Research and development suffer when debate and discussion are openly 
rejected on college campuses. Quashing intellectual curiosity hinders 
every field of study.
  The freedom to speak and think freely comes from God. Students should 
not have to sign away their First Amendment rights after enrolling in 
college, especially if those institutions accept taxpayer funds. It is 
time for colleges and universities to be held accountable when they 
refuse to protect the free speech of students and faculty.

                              {time}  1045

  Members of the Education and Workforce Committee have submitted 
multiple bills to promote and protect the freedom of speech on college 
campuses.
  In the next Congress, we look forward to examining closely these 
bills and other ways to preserve the First Amendment on campuses.


                        Independent Contractors

  Ms. FOXX. This administration won't be happy until it controls how, 
when, and where you work. It is hard to know if it is sheer arrogance 
that drives this administration to think it knows better than you or if 
Biden is so beholden to Big Labor that he refuses to see what is best 
for the rest of America.
  Regardless, this administration's attack on independent contractors 
is wrong, and Republicans aren't standing for it.
  Many workers, especially women, have come to rely on the flexibility 
the independent contracting model provides. A regular 9-to-5 schedule 
does not work for every American.
  Forcing all workers into a one-size-fits-all model, while a dream for 
union bosses, is a mistake. This debate is about freedom. Workers 
deserve the freedom to choose how they work.
  I am pushing back against Democrats' assault on entrepreneurial 
opportunity and their attempts to control the lives of Americans from 
birth until death.
  Because I have seen firsthand that when the Federal Government steps 
aside and allows job creators and industry leaders to innovate, the 
workforce and U.S. economy will thrive.
  We have had enough of this Washington-knows-best mentality.
  Remember when President Obama told Americans, ``You didn't build 
that.'' He ridiculously claimed that businesses need the government's 
help to be successful.
  As if this wasn't bad enough, now the Biden administration is telling 
America's entrepreneurs, ``You can't build that.'' This is 
unacceptable. We must do everything we can to stop this proposed rule, 
and I encourage everyone to get involved.
  Get on the phone, call your Representative and Senator, and submit a 
comment. We must put pressure on the Biden administration to withdraw 
this proposed rule.
  Enough is enough. The livelihoods of real people are at risk. 
Americans should be able to build a future they want for themselves. It 
is time for Washington to get out of the way.

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