[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 205 (Wednesday, December 13, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H6932-H6936]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONGRESSIONAL PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS: DELIVERING IN THE FACE OF REPUBLICAN 
                                 CHAOS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 9, 2023, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Ramirez) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
any extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Madam Speaker, we are here talking about the work that 
we have done, or tried to do, in this past year. This week is the last 
week Members of this body will gather to work on legislative business 
for 2023.
  The last time I convened the Special Order hour, my colleagues and I 
came to the floor to discuss the impact that the debt ceiling would 
have on everyday, working people. We said over and over that a debt 
ceiling agreement that shortchanged funding for vital programs 
shortchanges everyday people.
  I find that, much like in May, we are in the same place fighting to 
protect and to preserve the programs our communities need. Just like in 
May, I am here to remind this body why we were sent here and who sent 
us here: Our constituents.
  Let me be clear. Who sent us here are our constituents, not MAGA 
extremists, not lobbyists, and definitely not Donald Trump.
  This year, my colleagues and I on the Congressional Progressive 
Caucus have been fighting like hell for policies that protect people, 
including expanding healthcare for DACA recipients; addressing gun 
violence; securing protections for the workforce; and centering our 
policies around equity and justice.
  I am proud to say that we have been able to deliver for our 
communities, yes, even in the midst of chaos. While we were able to 
accomplish so little--although I know that my colleague tried to talk a 
little bit about what the GOP tried to do--I am convening this Special 
Order hour to speak truth to power.
  Madam Speaker, let me be clear and say that Republicans have held 
progress hostage. It has been a year, and we have spent more time on 
speakership elections--19 to be exact--pointless censures, and 
political theater, jeopardizing the safety and the well-being of 
people, instead of moving policy that improves their lives.
  We have spent countless hours subjected to words that dehumanize and 
devalue Brown and Black people, and I have witnessed firsthand as 
Members across the aisle call immigrants vile names like infestations 
over and over again, not just here but during my committee hearings; 
denying their humanity.
  I have spent more time attending vigils than celebrating life because 
Republicans are intent on holding up bills that would address gun 
violence.
  I have spent more time voting ``no'' to protect my constituents from 
harmful cuts and reckless policies than I have had the opportunity to 
vote ``yes'' to legislation that prioritizes working people and 
families.
  I have spent more time on picket lines affirming that workers deserve 
living wages, protection from retaliation, and the right to 
collectively bargain than actually passing policies that ensure that 
all workers are compensated well, respected, and valued.
  When I was elected to Congress, I told my community that I was 
committed to delivering results. I am here today to say that in the 
face of everyday Republican-manufactured obstacles to progress, their 
political games, their disorganization, and their opposition to 
honoring our shared humanity, I remained true to my commitments and my 
values as a Member of Congress.
  I have remained focused on delivering results for Illinois' Third 
Congressional District and honoring our diverse multicultural, 
multigenerational community.
  I am not alone.
  My colleagues in the Congressional Progressive Caucus have also 
remained true to their commitment and their values and focused on 
delivering for their districts. I am grateful to be flanked by such 
dedicated, persevering, and courageous leaders.
  Madam Speaker, I am pleased to welcome one of my colleagues to share 
some of the progress that she has made and what Congress must still 
continue to do to accomplish and deliver for the people.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. 
Lee).
  Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I stand here today because we 
are just 1 month from another government shutdown, and Congressional 
Republicans have demonstrated once again that they are more concerned 
about satisfying their culture warrior base than actually addressing 
any of the problems their constituents face.
  Madam Speaker, that hasn't stopped us from delivering for our 
districts. I am here because the everyday working-class people of 
Allegheny and Westmoreland Counties came together to say, everybody 
should have a livable wage, clean air and water, affordable housing, 
decent transportation, and healthcare.
  The people I represent resoundingly rejected the status quo and 
decades of corporations leaving us behind and polluting our communities 
without accountability. They demanded political representation that 
will actually try to solve the problems they face and not play 
political games with their lives.
  Our movement's detractors, including those in Congress, many of them, 
will try to make you believe that people from working-class backgrounds 
representing working-class districts are too consumed by fighting 
national political battles and don't do enough to deliver for our 
districts.
  Let me be clear. Key priorities of the Biden administration, like the 
Inflation Reduction Act, would not have happened without progressives 
here fighting tooth and nail to ensure that our communities had what 
they needed to thrive. Despite Republicans' dysfunction, we haven't 
stopped fighting even for one second.

  We are proud to have delivered in my district nearly $1 billion in 
Federal investments for infrastructure, affordable housing, STEM 
innovation, clean air, and good-paying jobs because the people of 
Western Pennsylvania and across the country deserve leaders in Congress 
who have lived their struggles and work as hard as they do.
  Whether it was delivering $400 million from the Department of 
Energy's clean financing program to fund EOS, a battery storage 
manufacturer that will employ thousands of workers in PA-12's Mon 
Valley, in particular, or the over $150 million to improve transit in 
Pittsburgh, or helping to deliver $50 million for affordable housing in 
the historically divested Hill District of Pittsburgh.
  Our movement in Pennsylvania is delivering on priorities that won't 
just improve our communities but the lives of people across the 
country. We are demonstrating the power we can recognize when 
communities that have been left behind elect leaders that have actually 
gone through what they have.
  Throughout history, and particularly over the past four decades, 
working-class people, disproportionately Black and Brown, have been 
told our priorities are too radical, our needs are too unrealistic, and 
that our lives are expendable. Our movement stands in direct contrast 
to that, standing up to monied interests and fighting for our 
communities to be healthier, stronger, and more resilient.
  The wins we have secured that I have talked about today represent 
just a small part of what our movement has done while in elected 
office, and you can be sure we are not done yet.
  On the other side, Republicans are demonstrating that they are 
fundamentally unserious when it comes to addressing the problems that 
their constituents face, and all of our constituents.

[[Page H6933]]

  Now Republicans are fighting battles so they can reconcile their 
internal struggle between satisfying their rightwing cable-news culture 
warriors and their ultra-wealthy corporate donors.
  They are an embarrassment, and their constituents and our country 
will remember.
  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Madam Speaker, as the gentlewoman was talking, I 
started asking myself that if our colleagues that are in the majority 
were actually serious about delivering for their constituents, then 
perhaps we would spend less time in censures; perhaps we would spend 
less time fighting each other, doing whatever kidney-elbow situation; 
arguing with each other on the corners, and all the games and all the 
other things they do, and actually pass legislation that helps people's 
experiences improve, like legislation around housing, making it more 
affordable so that no one has to live in a tent.
  It is interesting because Republicans seem to really care about 
homelessness when it is someone that is undocumented, that is an 
immigrant or asylum seeker, but they have had the opportunity in 
leadership in these past 12 months to pass legislation to address 
housing, and instead, they are cutting funds for housing.
  They say they care about families and women and their wives and their 
children, but they refuse to pass paid leave.
  They say they care and are worried about healthcare, but are they 
really? Because if they were worried about healthcare, we would be 
doing less of the crazy theater here--19 elections for a darn Speaker--
and actually pass quality healthcare.
  Let's talk a little bit more about what they haven't done and what we 
should be focusing on.
  I know that the gentleman from Utah attempted to talk about the GOP 
accomplishments, but I couldn't figure out which one accomplishment he 
was able to actually tangibly prove.
  Let's talk about housing. It is no secret that housing prices are 
skyrocketing.
  In Chicago, for example, we have seen a 5.7 increase in the cost of 
rent in 1 year. In some communities, it is as high as a 20 percent 
increase.
  As temperatures plummet, more people find themselves in tents 
suffering cold nights in unsafe conditions, or they are just one 
paycheck away from homelessness.
  You would think that our colleagues would be concerned about 
government shutdowns since so many people are just one paycheck away 
from homelessness. While working families are struggling to pay rent, 
we faced not one, but two threats of a Republican national shutdown.
  I have to say it over and over. This is what my constituents ask me 
about every time I go back home, or message me: We didn't elect you all 
to spend your time fighting each other because you don't like each 
other, or because one person said this thing that this other person 
didn't like. All this time you spend censuring each other and fighting 
instead of negotiating appropriation bills that would fully fund our 
communities.
  Yet, that is what 12 months in Congress have looked like. The 
Republicans are leaving everyday American families literally out in the 
cold.
  In spite of Republican chaos, I, along with Representatives Rashida 
Tlaib from Michigan-12, Ayanna Pressley from Massachusetts-07,   Jimmy 
Gomez from California-34, and  Greg Casar from Texas-35 are delivering 
when it comes to housing.
  We introduced H.R. 5827, the Tenants' Right to Organize Act, 
legislation that will protect the power of tenants with Federal 
vouchers to organize.

                              {time}  1915

  We know that throughout our Nation, from big cities, like Chicago, to 
smaller cities, tenants have recognized that when we fight, when we 
come together and claim our power, we win.
  Tenant organizing is not only winning battles against unfair housing 
practices, unjustified evictions, housing discrimination, and 
uncontrolled price hikes; it is also changing housing public policy.
  The Tenants' Right to Organize Act, my bill, aims to amplify their 
efforts by protecting the organizing rights of tenants with housing 
choice vouchers and tenants living in low-income housing tax credit 
properties. It also expands protections for mixed-status families and 
those who may not be eligible for tenant-based rental assistance.
  Currently, only public housing tenants have legally recognized the 
right to organize. By extending this right to housing choice vouchers 
and low-income tax credit tenants, the bill acknowledges that all 
tenants deserve decent, safe, stable, and sanitary housing.
  The fight for safe, stable, equitable housing must also include 
tenants, and as we are encountering a worsening housing affordability 
crisis, we understand that now, more than ever, all tenants must have 
the right to organize.
  Now, let's talk about immigration. This is a place where I find the 
most dissonance. The same people that love to quote Scripture--God has 
called me to love him above all things--and then they seem to forget 
the second commandment: Love your neighbor as you love yourself--it 
couldn't be more clear as it comes to immigration.
  I cannot count the number of times the same people who quote 
Scripture come to this podium to respond while scapegoating immigrant 
communities, demonizing them, and then saying that they care about 
them, ``poor immigrants.''
  Well, if you cared about them and if you cared about humanity, and 
certainly if we were living our Christian values, then we would be 
looking for legal pathways so no one would have to endure what so many 
people seeking asylum have to do every single day.
  Republicans have repeatedly tried to introduce legislation and 
resolutions that deport unaccompanied children. These are the same 
people that say that they are the ones of family values, they are the 
ones protecting life and children. They want to end asylum, and they 
want to jail families.
  They are trying again right now. They are seeking to extort immoral 
and deplorable border provisions in exchange for aid for Ukraine. I 
have said it before and I will say it again and again and again: It is 
hypocritical, cynical, to target immigrants when many of the people who 
serve in this Chamber, some of them with me right now, have reaped the 
benefits of immigrant labor and become wealthy on the backs of 
immigrant sacrifice.
  It takes courage to cross the border, to seek a job, to pursue an 
opportunity to raise your children in safety. The courage of our people 
stands in stark contrast with the cowardice of my colleagues.
  There is nothing people-centered, nothing noble, nothing redeeming 
about their extremist approach to border immigration policy. Let's just 
be clear. They are scapegoating immigrants right now so they can say to 
their voters that they are doing something about the border, but they 
are not going to want to do enough, because they want to take the 
border conversation and issue to the polls in November.
  Their unwillingness to negotiate, to actually get to the root cause 
of migration, is mind-boggling. They don't want solutions. Because if 
they wanted solutions, they would understand that actually addressing 
immigration, passing comprehensive immigration reform, would actually 
prioritize our economy. It would actually address the root causes of 
migration in Central and South America by creating legal pathways, by 
working with these countries, by ensuring that we help strengthen their 
democracies.
  Yet, in spite of all the Republican chaos, a number of us have 
reintroduced the Dream and Promise Act, and we will work and work until 
we deliver it.
  In spite of my Republican colleagues' inability to act beyond the 
border, we are here taking that first step in the right direction to 
give Dreamers and immigrants in America an earned pathway to 
citizenship that reflects our values as a Nation, a multicultural 
democracy of diversity and inclusion. We are here moving the needle to 
a real comprehensive immigration reform package that embraces our 
values as a nation.
  Now, let me talk a little bit more about that. There are 9.8 million 
job openings right now. You can go to your local grocery store, go to 
Aldi, because some of us shop there still, very proudly, or you can go 
to absolutely any

[[Page H6934]]

other store. You talk about supply chain, and you realize that we don't 
have the workforce we need in order to address the issues of economy of 
the moment.
  Now, just imagine, if the people that are here already, of the 11 
million people living in the shadows, some of them for the last 30 
years, if they were able to get a work permit, they would pay taxes, 
generate revenue for the Federal Government, helping address our issues 
of budget. They would address supply chain issues, our manufacturing, 
hospitality, agriculture, and the list goes on in terms of the 
different trades that are desperately needing workers that would get 
the workers they need. They would actually extend Social Security by 
decades if we passed comprehensive immigration policy, but that is not 
what we want to do.
  We are so insecure perhaps about ourselves that we are unable to see 
the bigger picture of the economy for our country. Comprehensive 
immigration reform is a solution to the economy. Comprehensive 
immigration reform is the American way. This country was founded by 
immigrants, and every single person in this Chamber right now comes 
from a family who also migrated to this country, unless you are from 
the original indigenous communities.
  Let me say this. As the only Member of Congress married to a Dreamer, 
this issue is extremely personal to me. I am committed to fighting this 
fight until we have a humane immigration policy that doesn't question 
the validity of people's lives and claims, that doesn't impose hurtful 
limitations on our communities, or doesn't leave anyone behind. No 
bans. No walls. No raids. Punto.

  I want to talk to you a little bit about education and veterans. 
While extreme Republicans have served up hate and fear from every 
direction with no regard for the harm it causes our communities, I have 
been focused on addressing the real issues everyday people face--people 
like Army veteran Christopher Brown from Des Plaines, Illinois, who was 
promised by ITT Tech that his GI benefits would cover his tuition, only 
to be left with $95,000 in student loans, or Navy veteran Bryan Tario 
from Lisle, Illinois, who was left with a significant debt after DeVry 
failed to be clear about the amount of money needed to complete his 
education.
  Constituents in our districts have real problems that require real 
policy solutions. There are bad actors who should be held accountable 
and whose impact on our constituents can be minimized through 
prevention and redress.
  These are the problems we should be addressing. If we spent the 
actual time addressing these issues, we would see the American people 
feel the improvement in their day-to-day lives.
  Too many veterans are defrauded by predatory, often for-profit 
institutions that see the GI Bill education benefits and only see a 
profitable exploit.
  In spite of the Republican chaos, I, along with Representative   Mike 
Levin from California, have introduced the Student Veteran Benefit 
Restoration Act, my very first piece of legislation in United States 
Congress.
  H.R. 1767 establishes an across-the-board process for student 
veterans to have their GI Bill education benefits restored in 
qualifying instances, such as when a student veteran has been defrauded 
by an educational institution.
  While Republicans waste our time doling out impeachments and 
censures, they deny veterans who have been defrauded justice, leaving 
them without recourse or the ability to start again in a reputable 
institution using the benefits they earned while serving our Nation.
  It is time to bring H.R. 1767 to the floor, and I know that our 
veterans are watching closely and deserve it.
  Now, I want to talk about health. Every person in Illinois' Third 
Congressional District has a right to achieve their dreams. As Members 
of Congress, our policy choices should enable them to realize their 
full potential.
  Access to healthcare and healthcare services are critical supports to 
that end. That is why, while Republicans have made it their mission to 
cut funding for hospitals, healthcare providers, on-the-ground 
organizations that support health equity efforts, and programs that 
enable the healthcare ecosystem to function, my colleagues and I have 
made expanding access to healthcare services a priority.
  Republicans proposed a Labor-HHS appropriation bill that cuts vital 
programs and services by 28 percent, equivalent to $64 billion. 
Democrats held the line, and this bill did not pass. However, my 
colleagues, of course, did not stop there.
  In spite of their chaos, I, along with so many of my colleagues, 
continue to deliver for our communities. Our fearless chair, 
Representative Jayapal, also introduced the Medicare for All Act, which 
would expand healthcare coverage to everyone, and I am a proud 
cosponsor of it.
  We advocated for and we are proud to see the proposed rule from the 
Department of Health and Human Services that would grant eligibility 
for healthcare coverage to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, 
DACA, recipients.
  I introduced an amendment to the Labor-HHS appropriation bill that 
affirmed how critical it is for the Consumer Financial Protection 
Bureau to maintain its independence from congressional meddling so that 
it can continue to address practices that harm consumers, especially 
predatory lending that leads to medical debt.
  Medical debt puts people in an impossible position, having to choose 
between seeking necessary healthcare services and paying for their 
basic needs, like housing, food, and heat.
  We didn't do that work alone. Achieving health equity requires 
collective action, which is why I am proud to highlight the work of the 
AIDS Foundation of Chicago. In partnership with over 200 organizations 
and with funding support from the Ryan White program, the AIDS 
Foundation of Chicago served over 8,000 individuals last year through 
case management, housing, emergency financial assistance, and food 
support. Services include, but are not limited to, connections to 
housing, medical care, transportation, and behavioral health support.
  The last thing I want to talk about is appropriations, something that 
this leadership doesn't seem to figure out. We are on our second 
continuing resolution, and the way things are going, we might have to 
go to a third one in January.
  Let's not forget that Democrats have effectively kept the government 
open amid Republican infighting and, goodness, so much disorganization.
  If we remember their first attempt at a continuing resolution, it 
included terrible anti-immigrant provisions and about a 30 percent cut 
to government services, which would have meant that in Illinois' Third 
District, 10,901 women and children would have gone hungry, 28,187 
active and reserve servicemembers would have gone without payment in 
Illinois, and 5,000 residents in Illinois' Third District would have 
lost access to Federal help and vouchers.
  These are not the goals of people who care about working families. 
How can you say that you are the party of family and then do everything 
you can to slash resources for them? To me, on the contrary, it is a 
vicious attack on working families.
  At that time we said that if the Republicans were serious about 
averting a shutdown, they would bring a clean CR to the floor to keep 
our government running and to continue bipartisan conversations about 
funding priorities.
  With less than 24 hours to avoid a shutdown, Republicans presented 
another CR. In spite of the Republican chaos, I, along with so many of 
my colleagues, delivered.

                              {time}  1930

  We defeated the extremist CR, and that victory made the clean CR that 
averted a shutdown possible.
  We forced them to, at least momentarily, back down from their anti-
immigrant demands and their cold disregard for working families. Let's 
remember that fight is not over.
  You just heard a number of my colleagues, particularly the last one, 
talk about H.R. 2. H.R. 2 is the most anti-immigrant bill we have ever 
seen pass the Homeland Security Committee. We call it the child 
deportation act.
  They want to bring back draconian Trump-era border policy. In the 
same sentence, they talk about how they are concerned about the women 
and children crossing the border. If that is not dissonance and 
hypocrisy, I don't know what is.
  Let me say this loud and clear. It is our responsibility to deliver 
for the

[[Page H6935]]

people who sent us here. We are looking like chaos under Republican 
leadership. We must continue to double down, push back, and fight for 
working families.
  I am committed to continuing the fight for an appropriations package 
that protects essential safety net programs and vital services, brings 
Federal resources back to my district and the State of Illinois, and 
prevents further cuts that threaten the well-being of our communities.
  Madam Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Summer Lee for joining me today 
as we talked about the Progressive Caucus' Special Order hour, the 
things that we continue to work on, and the victories in the midst of 
the chaos.
  Here is what I want to say as I wrap up. Two days ago, I got back 
from Guatemala and Honduras. I went on my first committee delegation 
trip. As I visited Guatemala as a United States Congressperson, I 
couldn't stop thinking about my mother and how she has reminded me over 
the years of the 1,800-mile journey she took, walking and suffering as 
she was pregnant with me. She left poverty. She left a place she loved 
to have a better opportunity for me, her daughter.
  I think about the moment that we are in today. I am very proud that I 
am the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants. I am very proud that I am the 
very first Latina of many to come from the Midwest. But I am more proud 
and honored to be able to be in this place, in this Chamber, fighting 
every single day for working families.
  I am fighting for women who deserve paid leave and for constituents 
across the country who deserve quality healthcare.
  I am fighting for clean water, clean energy, affordable housing, and 
the ability of the American people not to have to worry about living 
paycheck to paycheck.
  I am fighting for that senior in my district who calls me crying: 
``If the government shuts down and I don't get my Social Security 
check, at 74 years of age, I am out in the street.'' These are the 
people who send us to Congress.
  Madam Speaker, most of my colleagues, while celebrating and partying 
at holiday celebrations, perhaps having many spirits, should be 
reminded why they were sent to this Chamber. They were sent to 
represent the people who see them as their voice.
  I will say to women, women of color, immigrants, the working class, 
children and our youth, Brown and Black people, the LGBTQ community, 
advocates and activists, on-the-ground organizations providing critical 
services, and anyone who feels afraid or invisible right now, to 
friends and allies of the progressive movement, and to my constituents 
in Illinois: I see you. I am fighting for you every single day.
  There have been hard days in Washington, D.C., when I have been the 
only woman, the only Latina, the only elected official with a mixed-
status family where people are making decisions that will impact my 
life and your life, things that will impact the people I care about and 
the people you care about.
  If there is ever a moment I falter, I think about my roots. I think 
about who I was sent here to fight for, and I find my footing again. My 
community is with me wherever I go, no matter how far away from home I 
might be.
  While Republicans and their destructive agenda seek to decay the 
trust we have with one another, and they seek to divide us by holding 
resources hostage, community holds us together.
  I refuse to allow Republicans and their obstruction of justice stop 
my colleagues and I from achieving true progress. I believe that 
progress is possible and that we can build a country that honors and 
respects the humanity and dignity of all marginalized people.
  I believe that seeking asylum is a human right. I believe housing is 
a human right. In a country as rich as ours, no one should ever go 
hungry. No one should be trapped by crippling debt, whether it be 
student loan debt or medical debt. Brown and Black people are not 
disposable.
  I fiercely fight for a world in which no one has to make impossible 
choices between going hungry or keeping the lights on at home.
  I fight for a world where my loved ones like my uncle, who has been 
waiting for so long, can finally feel like this country is his home; 
where the color of our skin isn't a death sentence; and where we don't 
have to protest to ensure that climate change is taken seriously and 
the land and the people who take care of it are respected.
  I believe in a self-determined future where all Palestinians and 
Israelis are free and safe. Our futures are intersected, and that 
realization can provide a path to coexistence.
  A more just and loving world is possible. Progress is possible. It is 
possible because of the collective movement we are building--a 
progressive movement that does not move in fear but moves in courage.
  The work is nowhere near done. Whether Republicans like it or not, I 
am here to stay and do the work that secures the future for all people. 
May we be reminded in this new year why we are here, who sent us here, 
and the responsibility we have to represent our constituents.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, during the 118th Congress, Democrats 
have worked persistently to advance legislation and policies that 
support the American people.
  This Congress, Democrats have been met with fighting and incompetency 
from Republicans, an unwillingness to work together, and one of the 
most unproductive sessions in the history of Congress.
  Despite the chaos, we have kept the government from defaulting on its 
debts and made sure that the government stayed open to do the work of 
the people.
  I have worked with my colleagues to fight for the 18th Congressional 
District of Texas and my constituents, ensuring that the work of the 
federal government continues despite the chaos from Republicans.
  House Democrats stand firm in our commitments to protect essential 
safety net programs and vital services, deliver for our districts, and 
prevent further cuts that would threaten the wellbeing of our 
constituents.
  Democrats are united in putting People Over Politics to lower costs 
and grow the middle class.
  As we wrap up the 1st session of the 118th Congress and look forward 
to the 2nd session, it is the job of Congress to fund our government, 
pass legislation that betters the lives of the American people, and 
ensure that we advocate for our constItuents.
  Extreme MAGA Republicans have had a difficult time coming to a 
consensus on how to pass their wildly unpopular and harmful 
legislation.
  Instead of working in a bipartisan matter, they are wasting time and 
taxpayer dollars by bringing legislation to the floor that has no 
chance of passing the Senate and being signed by President Biden.
  Congress should be working to lower costs and protect of national 
security instead of focusing on partisan politics.
  As we go home for the holidays to our constituents and families, we 
bring with us a looming government shutdown, a result of incompetency 
and disfunction from extreme MAGA Republicans.
  When we come back in January we must get back to our work.
  The American people deserve a Congress that is serious in manner and 
functions to the best of its ability.
  My friends across the aisle have not been willing to compromise 
during any of the most time-sensitive and dire moments in the 118th 
Congress.
  While they have been focused on division and fear, House Democrats 
have worked to advocate for their communities while simultaneously 
offering to collaborate on the most crucial legislation on a bipartisan 
basis.
  In this Congress, I have worked tirelessly to improve the lives of my 
constituents in Houston.
  I have worked to fight against sex trafficking and introduced 
legislation to stop human trafficking in school zones, introduced gun 
safety legislation as well as legislation to stop the trafficking of 
fentanyl, and have brought over $200 million in grants to my district.
  While I am proud of the work that I have done for the 18th 
congressional district of Texas, there is still much work that we need 
to do.
  We have been kicking the can down the road for months, and rather 
than address the main duty as members of Congress--funding the 
government--House Republicans instead are launching baseless 
accusations against our President to score cheap political points.
  Under Republican leadership we have just barely avoided two 
government shutdowns by the skin of our teeth and have been unable to 
pass meaningful legislation that would improve the lives of Americans.
  This is not to say Democrats have not tried to reach across the 
aisle.
  We indicated we would be open to negotiation to avert the first 
shutdown, and we were

[[Page H6936]]

rebuffed until the situation was at its most critical point.
  We indicated we would be open to negotiation to avert the second 
shutdown, and our friends across the aisle took to the media to express 
countless times that they would refuse to work with Democrats to find a 
solution.
  By trying to suppress Democratic voices, Republican leadership is 
silencing half of the country simply because they have a different 
worldview.
  Moreover, by not passing serious legislation, Republicans are 
stifling the very constituents who put them in office.
  To serve the people who elected us to Congress, we all must work 
together to enact positive change born from compromise and a combined 
desire to serve as a voice for our constituents.
  The performance of Republican leadership in this Congress has been 
utterly disappointing, and I urge my colleagues across the aisle to 
remember that to serve the people, we must work together to provide 
comprehensive and meaningful legislation.

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