[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 196 (Thursday, November 20, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H4827-H4828]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING CHIEF HERBERT D. PROFFITT

  (Mr. Barr of Kentucky was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a Kentucky hero, Chief 
Herbert D. Proffitt, and his son, Jeff Proffitt, who has worked 
tirelessly to ensure his father's sacrifice is never forgotten.
  Chief Proffitt served our Nation in Korea and then protected the 
people of Tompkinsville, Kentucky, for 55 years in law enforcement. 
Years after he left the force, Chief Proffitt was murdered by a 
criminal he had arrested and put behind bars over a decade earlier. 
When his family sought Federal death benefits provided to families of 
fallen officers, they were denied because Proffitt was retired at the 
time of his death.
  This exposed a painful loophole in the system and one that I am 
fighting to correct. I am leading the Chief Herbert D. Proffitt Act, 
legislation to amend the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program to 
ensure that the families of retired law enforcement officers who are 
killed as a result of their service are not unjustly denied benefits.
  I thank Jeff Proffitt and the entire Proffitt family for their many 
years of service to Tompkinsville and Monroe County. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bill because it is our solemn duty to 
support the families of fallen law enforcement officers and make sure 
that the service and sacrifice of heroes like Chief Herbert D. Proffitt 
are never forgotten.


                       Recognizing Robert N. Clay

  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a true pillar of 
Kentucky's signature thoroughbred horse racing industry.
  Recently, Mr. Robert N. Clay was selected by The Thoroughbred Club of 
America as its 2025 Honor Guest, a well-deserved accolade that reflects 
a lifetime of excellence and leadership in our great Commonwealth's 
signature horse racing industry.
  The founder of world-renowned Three Chimneys Farm in 1972, Clay built 
a legacy of breeding champions, supporting local jobs, and setting the 
standard for others to follow. Stallions to stand stud at Three 
Chimneys' during Clay's tenure included Slew of Gold, who was the 
operation's first stallion; Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew; and 
classic winners Silver Jones, Smarty Jones, Point Given, and Big Brown, 
as well as breed shapers Dynaformer and Rahy.
  His contributions reach beyond the track. They reflect what Kentucky 
stands for: tradition, hard work, and community.
  Today, we honor Mr. Clay not only for his success in breeding and 
racing, but also for being a model Kentuckian.
  A descendant of former Speaker of the House Henry Clay, the great 
compromiser, Robert Clay recently helped to establish the Henry Clay 
Center for Statesmanship, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization 
dedicated to transforming the tone of our country's national discourse 
and inspiring current and future leaders to emulate the political 
legacy of Henry Clay to find common ground through beneficial 
compromise.
  On behalf of the people of Kentucky and this House, I thank Mr. 
Robert Clay for his life's work. I congratulate him on this honor, and 
I look forward to witnessing the enormous positive impact his efforts 
will continue to make on our Commonwealth.


                          Condemning Socialism

  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the 
resolution condemning socialism and reaffirm my commitment to the 
principles of free market capitalism. These are principles that have 
guided the United States into becoming the most prosperous nation in 
the history of the world.
  For more than two centuries, America's free enterprise system has 
lifted more people out of poverty, created more opportunity, and 
generated more innovation than any other economic model the world has 
ever known. American GDP has grown more than a hundredfold since 1920. 
Average life expectancy has risen dramatically. American workers today 
enjoy standards of living that socialist economies could never deliver.

                              {time}  1100

  Contrast that with socialism. Wherever socialism has been tried--the 
former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Maoist China, Cuba, and 
Venezuela--it has produced the same tragic pattern: economic collapse, 
shortages, lost freedoms, and human suffering. Venezuela, one of the 
most wealthy countries in Latin America, saw its economy contract by 
over 75 percent after adopting socialist policies, destroying its 
currency and plunging millions into poverty.
  Mr. Speaker, free markets empower individuals. Socialism empowers the 
state. Socialism requires coercive power. To plan effectively, 
socialist central planners must override individual choices. This 
expands state power and threatens political freedom.
  Capitalism, in contrast, is the only system capable of using 
dispersed knowledge, preserving individual freedom, and enabling 
spontaneous social cooperation without central direction. Under free 
enterprise, businesses compete, innovate, and create, driving American 
leadership in everything from technology to agriculture to energy.
  Free markets and capitalism gave birth to the American Dream that is

[[Page H4828]]

the envy of the world. Under socialism, bureaucrats dictate, ration, 
and restrict.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution. Let's 
send a clear message that the United States will always stand for 
freedom over government coercion, markets over mandates, and prosperity 
over poverty.

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