Tom Cole

Mr. COLE

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Strong), vice chair of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Arizona.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Ciscomani), my good friend and the vice chair of the Homeland Security Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Amodei), the distinguished chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee and my very good friend.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, before I yield to my next Speaker, I want to associate myself with the remarks of my good friend, the ranking member, in terms of her retiring staff, Jocelyn Hunn. I join my friend in congratulating her on her distinguished service and wishing her well in the next chapter of her life. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise).

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, last year, Democrats initiated the longest full government shutdown in American history. It severely impacted families, agencies, personnel, and services across the Nation. What should have been a lesson on how not to treat hardworking Americans has instead become routine for Senator Schumer and Senate Democrats. Today marks day 41 of the Department of Homeland Security shutdown, already the longest partial shutdown on record. In just 3 days, it will surpass even last year's historic lapse, further compounding the harm to our national security and the workforce charged with protecting it. There are many ways to measure the damage, yet every metric reflects a burden on our citizens. We can look at time. DHS has been comprehensively shut down for close to 50 percent of the fiscal year. That is nearly 100 days of dysfunction and counting. We can look at personnel. More than 100,000 employees have missed paychecks. We can look at travel. Airports across the Nation are experiencing severe lines and delays as TSA callout rates soar. We can look at contingency funds. FEMA's disaster relief fund is nearly empty. The list doesn't end there, yet it makes clear exactly what Senate Democrats have chosen. But today, we are once again providing our colleagues across the aisle an opportunity to stop the chaos. Life doesn't offer many second chances, but here on the House floor this afternoon offers many Democrats a third chance to get it right. I am proud to say my friend and fellow appropriator, Mr. Ciscomani from Arizona, has introduced a Pay Our Homeland Defenders Act. This legislation comprehensively funds DHS. It resources critical security efforts, pays personnel, and gets our front line back to operational strength. It doesn't just pick and choose which parts of Homeland Security matter. It ensures that missions and personnel are supported across the board for the rest of the fiscal year. Representative Ciscomani put it plainly in a recent piece that he wrote, saying: ``This should not be a partisan issue. Paying the people who protect our country should be the bare minimum expectation of a functioning government. It is about respect. It is about responsibility. And most importantly, it is about safety.'' Mr. Ciscomani got it exactly right. This isn't a game. We are dealing with real security objectives, real community impacts, and real livelihoods. Congress has a basic responsibility: fund the government, pay the workforce, and protect the homeland. Republicans have consistently voted to meet that duty, and I urge Senate Democrats to follow our example. I call on everyone to vote ``yes.'' End this shutdown, and keep our Nation safe. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1131, I call up the bill (H.R. 8029) making appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. COLE

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that, in the engrossment of H.R. 7744, the Clerk be authorized to make technical corrections in spelling, punctuation, section numbering and cross- referencing, and the insertion of appropriate headings.

Mr. COLE

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by thanking my very good friend, the ranking member, for participating in debate and for working with us to get most of the government open. Quite frankly, I want to--not correct my good friend from Maryland who spoke earlier, but just provide some context. When we were in negotiations over this bill--we are in the majority in each Chamber--we asked the minority what did they need. My friend, the ranking member, told me what she needed, and we compromised on almost every bill, all but one. She said that this is the form in which I would like to receive it and would maximize the chances of funding most of the government. She followed her word to the letter, and we got most of those bills through. We actually got all of those bills through because we did it. By the same token, I asked our friends, the Senate Democrats: What do you need in terms of this to be able to pass the legislation? It doesn't mean you have to agree with everything in it. It is a compromise bill. So they told us what they needed. They wanted a package, not a separate vote, and they got exactly what they asked for and exactly what they had agreed to. Nobody got everything they wanted, but this is a compromise bill. You give it to us in this form, and we can pass it. They didn't. Now, the reality is a majority of each Chamber is in favor of this legislation. They were in favor of the other five bills which, thankfully, were enacted, or we would be in the middle of a complete government shutdown now. The majority of both Chambers have voted for this bill. This is a case of the minority deciding to hold the majority hostage. No legislative majority is ever going to agree to that. My friends would not agree to that. I was here when we were debating the repeal of ObamaCare. We adopted a similar strategy to what Senate Democrats are pursuing today, and note I said Senate Democrats. It didn't work. I didn't think it was very smart. We brought whole sections of the government out to reauthorize. We could say exactly what our friends are saying today: Well, gosh, we are not for shutting down the Department of Defense. We are not for this. You should vote for that. They didn't vote for any of it because they said they weren't going to be blackmailed. They also said that it was nonsensical to pick and choose which of the different agencies and particular departments we would keep open. They were right about that. They are now pursuing exactly what Republicans did and exactly what they condemned so vociferously and, I would say, correctly at the time. This is legislative blackmail, and the people who are being hurt are the people who have nothing to do with this dispute. They are doing their jobs, the people at FEMA, the people at TSA, elements of the Coast Guard, the civilian elements of the Coast Guard, and the whole range of things I went through in my opening statement. There is simply no justification for it. There are negotiations going on on these various matters dealing with Homeland Security. Some of them were in the bill. Body cameras are an excellent Democratic suggestion. Nine times out of 10, I think body cameras show the law enforcement official is almost always in the right, but on the 10th time, we certainly want to know when they are not so we can correct that problem. That is a good idea. That was a Democratic suggestion that we incorporated in the bill. Let's have de-escalation training to lower tension. That is a good idea, and that is in the bill. There were other things we tried to get in the bill that, frankly, probably, ought to be done just by operation that we weren't able to succeed. We have to have a bill that can pass both Chambers and be signed by the President. Now, government and appropriations, more than any other part, is a give-and-take process, and we negotiated almost everything very openly and honestly. We negotiated this bill openly and honestly. It was Senate Democrats who, after agreeing to one thing--which, by the way, is exactly what happened in the first government shutdown. We should look at that. How did that end up? It lasted 43 days. It was the longest government shutdown in history. Did Democrats achieve any of their objectives? No. Now, they think they scored political points. They think it made them more popular, but did they substantively achieve anything? No. Right now, there are negotiations going on, largely involving the administration and Senate Democrats. That is fine. I understand there are some changes being made there. We ought to allow that process to continue. We should not shut down the government. This bill is substantially the same--as the chairman of the subcommittee, Mr. Amodei, said--as what we saw on this floor 2 months ago, but the situation is fundamentally different. We are in even more dangerous times. We can debate about that ad infinitum, but I don't think we should be debating as to whether our Homeland Security apparatus should be up, paid, operational, vigilant, and alert. This is the time, of all times, that should happen. I think some of my friends on the other side--not all of them, but some of them--will have changed their minds because circumstances are different. Frankly, we want to give them the opportunity to go ahead and vote that way if they have changed their minds. If they haven't, that is fine. They can go ahead and keep the Department shut down, but it is at odds with everything they have stood for and preached for many, many, many years. In the end, I don't think it is helpful in moving the country forward or solving problems. I have never favored shutdowns. I have never argued for them. I have always argued against them, whether my party did it--and we have certainly done it--or the other side. The same thing is true now. Mr. Speaker, I think if we reflect, we should, in a bipartisan way, do what we did 2 months ago and pass this bill. Hopefully, the Senate will have the opportunity to do the same thing. I urge my colleagues to support this bill, Mr. Speaker, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I advise my friend I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Pennsylvania.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Mackenzie), my very good friend.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Kim), my very good friend.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Amodei), my very good friend and chairman of the Subcommittee on Homeland Security of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, we are here once again on the House floor amidst a partial government shutdown. The bill before us isn't new. In fact, we debated this very same bill just 2 months ago. It reflects the bipartisan, bicameral agreement that Senate Democrats, at the last minute, failed to honor. Shutting down the Department of Homeland Security over a partisan fight hasn't changed the stakes, but maybe, knowing how critical it is to keep the homeland safe at this heightened moment, Democrats will side with reason and protecting the Nation. No matter the question, shutdowns are never the answer. I know my colleagues think that by shutting down the government, they are somehow punishing Donald Trump for winning the election, but President Trump is not the one feeling the pain of a shutdown. They are punishing the TSA agents, who are working hard to keep their communities safe. They are punishing FEMA employees, who are trying to help Americans who are fighting through these winter storms. They are punishing the cybersecurity analysts at CISA, who are combating constant threats to our infrastructure and electric grid. Hundreds of thousands of Federal employees in critical national security positions are being forced to work without pay. Their jobs leave no room for error, but they are being asked to continue that critical work with the added stress of not knowing when they will receive their next paycheck and not knowing if they will be able to put gas in their cars or food on their table. A few weeks ago, we heard from TSA Acting Director McNeill at an Appropriations Committee hearing. She talked about the impact of the longest shutdown in history, which was also initiated by Democrats. She told us about agents sleeping in their cars in the airport parking lot rather than spending money on gas to drive home because they couldn't afford it, and officers who sold their blood and plasma or took second jobs with what little spare time they had just to have money to feed their families. These hardworking families are just now barely recovered from the previous shutdown antics, and they are once again in the same confusing and undeserved position. Closing down or shortchanging Federal agencies is irrational and irresponsible. This isn't something that anyone should be proud of. It breaks my heart to hear of these stories. We know that shutdowns cause pain and uncertainty for the Nation. Personally, I would find it unconscionable if my vote was the reason that someone was sleeping in their car or if my vote was the reason that someone couldn't pay their mortgage this month. This isn't a game. These are real people and real lives. In addition to the astoundingly negative human impact that this shutdown is having on men and women who work for DHS, it is directly impacting our ability to keep Americans safe during heightened national security threats. In-person trainings at the National Fire Academy, the National Emergency Training Center, the Center for Domestic Preparedness, and the National Disaster and Emergency Management University have been canceled. The FEMA Disaster Relief Fund has a low balance, and the account will continue to be drained without new appropriations. Wait times through our Nation's airports are already increasing as staffing strains hit the TSA workforce. There will be no new national flood insurance policies processed, impacting Americans who are buying homes. CISA operates at limited capacity, with the majority of the workforce furloughed. Meanwhile, Iranian, Russian, and Chinese cyber actors continue targeting U.S. networks and critical infrastructure. While Coast Guard servicemembers received their most recent check, civilian personnel are working without pay. Homeland Security investigators, who investigate wide-ranging illicit activity, like drugs and weapons smuggling, as well as human trafficking, are not moving forward. These limitations on our national security capabilities should concern us all. There is no reason to vote against this critical funding for our Department of Homeland Security at such an important time for our country. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to vote ``yes'' to end this shutdown and to keep our Nation safe. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1095, I call up the bill (H.R. 7744) making appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. COLE

Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, when you reach a point like this, there are a lot of people to thank. I will begin by thanking the President of the United States. He supported each and every one of these tranches of bills that have been brought to the floor during this critical month where we completed the appropriations process. We would not be here today without him. We would probably not be voting on this bill without him. He has been working today tirelessly to make sure we followed our own procedures and brought this bill to the floor. I personally thank President Trump for his contribution to funding the government. People forget around here that he has to sign the bills. If he doesn't sign them, believe me, he can sustain any veto he cares to cast. He has used his influence and his power constructively to bring us together across partisan lines and to pass what are bipartisan, bicameral bills. I am eternally grateful for that. Mr. Speaker, I thank my own leadership. I don't know where Speaker Johnson got his patience from, but it must be God-given, because his support throughout this process working with us, never giving up, trying to restore regular order, has been incredible and I think unparalleled in the history of the speakership, in my view. I thank the other members of our leadership: Leader Scalise, Whip Emmer, and Conference Chair McClain. They all worked really hard to make sure that we could come together and work across the lines. They gave us the freedom and flexibility that we needed, but they also provided the persuasion that is necessary both within our own ranks and across the aisle. I thank especially the cardinals and the ranking members of the subcommittees. The ranking member and I agree, and we have tried to force decisionmaking down because we trust our cardinals and ranking members. They know their subjects. They know one another. They work together. Without them--and they solved most of the issues that were before us--we wouldn't be here. That model worked well because the people that we relied on, our chairmen and our ranking members, are people that we know and trust and that, frankly, know one another and trust one another and work well together. I am extraordinarily proud of this committee for what it did. I also particularly thank my friend, the ranking member across the aisle. Now, we don't always agree. As a matter of fact, once our mutual friend and former colleague Ambassador Rahm Emanuel called us the odd couple. That may be true. We don't usually start in the same place, but we are here today able to fund the government, 76 percent of the Government of the United States, because of the ranking member and because of her leadership and her hard work to find common ground. I admire her tremendously as a person, and I appreciate her as a working partner. We also have working partners in the United States Senate. If we didn't have Chairwoman Collins and if we didn't have Ranking Member Patty Murray, we wouldn't be here either. Again, this is not just a bipartisan or a House agreement. This is a bicameral agreement. Those institutional lines are sometimes more difficult than the partisan lines to negotiate, but we managed to do that. I am proud of each and every one of my ranking members but particularly the ranking member of my committee, the Appropriations Committee, in the House. We have had a lot of folks who have worked hard. We may have some disagreements in the coming days. We probably will. I would be surprised if we don't. But I know if we work hard, we can work through them and get to a successful conclusion. My friend, for instance, mentioned body cameras. I couldn't agree more. It is something we added in the bill but something she advocated for and championed. We agree on the need for additional training. There is lots we can find in common as we try to work through this, and I hope we are able to do that. The important thing today, Mr. Speaker, is to finish the task, to take these bills, which represent the vast majority of things where we have found common ground and agreement in a process of give and take and good faith efforts and compromise and debate, and make sure that they pass and reach the President's desk so we do not put American Federal workers and American soldiers and American public servants out of work. We let them do their job on behalf of the American people. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support what is genuinely a bicameral and bipartisan product and one that the President will sign and has urged us to pass. Mr. Speaker, again, I urge passage of this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1032, I call up the bill (H.R. 7148) making further consolidated appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes, with the Senate amendments thereto.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time that I may consume. Madam Speaker, the House has done a tremendous job these last few months as we have finalized true bipartisan, bicameral bills to fully fund our government in a Member-driven, district-focused way. Six of those bills have been signed into law by President Trump, fully funding those departments and agencies through the end of the fiscal year. While the remaining six bills have all passed the House, we are dealing with a partial government shutdown that could have and should have been avoided. Funding the government is not an optional exercise. It is the most basic duty we have in Congress. Two weeks ago, the House and the Senate struck a bipartisan and bicameral deal to move forward on these remaining appropriations bills for fiscal year 2026. The House acted expeditiously to pass these bills, marking historic progress for our appropriations process and the return to regular order that every Member of this Chamber wants to see. I share the frustrations of many that the Senate altered our deal at the last minute. However, our obligation is not to these emotions. It is to the American people. While we all worked hard, especially our cardinals, to ensure that all 12 bills would be signed into law before the January 30 deadline, the Senate has put us on a different path. The best choice before us is to pass these five bills and the short-term stopgap for the Department of Homeland Security. This approach delivers full-year funding to more than 95 percent of the government and avoids the consequence of inaction. To continue the government shutdown would be to repeat all the same mistakes my friends across the aisle made in October of last year, throwing Federal employees into chaos and confusion while they are forced to work without pay, wreaking havoc on our airports while TSA and FAA are unfunded, putting undue stress on our military families, and causing further instability to the United States economy. Shutdowns are never the answer. They don't work. They only hurt the American people. Today, lawmakers in this Chamber have an opportunity to avoid repeating past mistakes. I encourage everyone on both sides of the aisle to do the right thing and close out five of our remaining six appropriations bills for FY 2026 while enacting funding for core priorities, including: strengthening America's defense and providing a well-earned pay raise to our troops; advancing lifesaving biomedical research and critical education programs; enhancing the safety and reliability of our skies and infrastructure; supporting small businesses and strengthening cybersecurity; restoring American deterrence on the world stage and reinforcing economic and community strength across the country. The package also includes a 2-week continuing resolution for our sixth and final bill, the Department of Homeland Security, which will give the White House additional time for negotiations. President Trump is leading by example and engaging directly with Democrats in good-faith conversations on that front. He also has been explicitly clear that holding the government hostage is wrong. I wholeheartedly agree with him. As he stated just yesterday: We need to get the government open, and I hope all Republicans and Democrats will join me in supporting this bill, and send it to my desk without delay. I say to this Chamber: Let's get it done. The American people deserve stability, and they expect results. These bills deliver both. For anyone consulting their conscience, these measures have already passed the House with strong bipartisan support. The work has been carried out, and the responsibility now is to get it across the finish line. This vote is about governing responsibly and doing our jobs. I look forward to us nearing the completion of our FY26 duties. I urge all Members to support this bipartisan package. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Womack), the distinguished chairman of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee, and my very good friend.

Mr. COLE. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman from Arkansas.