[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 212 (Tuesday, December 16, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H5910]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT

  (Mr. Mann of Kansas was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, the first time I spoke on this floor this 
year, I highlighted the vision the Nation and our constituents charged 
us to usher in when they elected this Republican majority 1 year ago. 
The 77 million Americans had given this Congress a mandate to restore 
commonsense solutions and get our country back on track.
  The country was overwhelmingly frustrated with the open border, the 
Green New Deal, the heavy-handed regulatory policies from the Biden-
Harris administration, and we all wanted the madness to stop.
  This Republican majority has been laser focused on keeping our 
promise to America, and I am proud of all that we have accomplished in 
a little under 1 year.
  For years, the Nation watched as radical activists targeted the right 
to life, the right to bear arms, and even the freedom of speech. These 
rights are fundamental to who we are as Americans. On September 10, 
2025, the country saw the unimaginable happen when Charlie Kirk was 
senselessly assassinated for practicing his right to free speech and 
open debate. That is not who we are as Americans.
  Rather than allowing this evil to silence patriotic Americans, this 
majority recommitted ourselves to our founding values and the fact that 
we are endowed by our creator with inalienable rights and that the 
government exists to secure those rights, regardless of what way the 
political winds are blowing.
  As we move into 2026 and look forward to celebrating the 250th 
anniversary of our great Nation, it is important that we recommit 
ourselves to faith, family, and freedom and continue fighting to ensure 
that leadership in our Nation's Capital supports and affirms our God-
given rights.
  As I talk with Kansans about the challenges here in Washington, we 
all agreed: We need more Kansas values and commonsense solutions. While 
there is still a lot of work to do, we had a strong start to restoring 
this commonsense leadership. Over the course of the first 3 months of 
our Republican majorities in the House and Senate and President Trump's 
Presidency, we repealed Green New Deal policies that hindered small 
businesses, stifled innovation, and drove up costs for everyday 
families.
  President Trump's policies delivered the safest border in our 
Nation's history with Customs and Border Protection showing a 95 
percent decline in daily encounters under President Trump compared to 
President Biden's policies within the first 100 days. President Trump 
and congressional Republicans' policies enforced the law and worked 
tirelessly to remove bad actors from the country. Month after month, 
the data has shown and continues to show that our country is more 
secure now than ever.

  Our national debt continues to be a concern, standing today at $38 
trillion. It is obvious that Congress needs to continue cleaning up our 
fiscal house, and, for once, we have leadership willing to rein in 
wasteful spending.
  President Trump was the first President in our Nation's history to do 
what is necessary: pause Federal spending, go line by line through the 
Federal budget, and seriously evaluate how our Federal dollars are 
being spent. For many leaders of the Nation's Capital, this was 
heartburn, but for fiscal conservatives like me, it was welcomed fiscal 
sanity.
  Majorities in the House and Senate supported this rollback of 
wasteful spending, rescinding $9 billion spending for voter ID 
initiatives overseas, electric buses in Africa, and millions of dollars 
in LGBT movements around the world. This wasn't just fiscal 
irresponsibility. It is highway robbery.
  All of Washington should be working with Republicans to rein in our 
government spending, but as far-left activists demanded free healthcare 
for illegal immigrants, Federal spending lapsed, and the government 
shut down for 43 days, putting some of our most vulnerable and brave 
Americans at risk. House Republicans remained united, and we did not 
cave to the radical left. We stood firm and continued to urge our 
colleagues across the aisle to come to the table, return to regular 
order, and get our fiscal house back in order.
  Together, this majority has enacted policies that restore the 
American Dream. As a fifth-generation Kansan, I take that American 
Dream very seriously. For five generations, my family has farmed, 
raised cattle, and been involved in our western Kansas community. I 
want my children and future grandchildren to be able to do the same.
  The working families tax cuts passed by Congress help restore the 
American Dream by making the Trump tax cuts permanent and ushering in a 
new era of economic prosperity and growth for the country. Our 
legislation prevented Kansans from seeing a tax hike of more than 
$2,000 this upcoming January, made long-overdue investments in 
strengthening the farm safety net, and restored American energy 
dominance while ensuring affordable, reliable energy access for 
families across the country.
  This is the future Kansas families voted for as they have waited for 
years to get a degree of relief from the historic inflation levels 
caused by President Biden.
  Serving in the Big First District in the U.S. House of 
Representatives is a tremendous honor. I look forward to all that we 
are going to accomplish next term as we celebrate all the victories of 
this year.

                          ____________________