Michelle Fischbach

Mrs. FISCHBACH

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mrs. FISCHBACH

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I thank the representative from North Carolina (Ms. Ross) for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, today we are being asked to discuss House Resolution 4445, a bill that will do nothing to bring justice to victims of sexual harassment, and it could be argued that it would make the process worse. We are also discussing H.R. 3485, a duplicative messaging bill on human rights. The most bizarre bill we are looking at today is the American concedes act. This is yet another bill that was thrown together behind closed doors and with no bipartisan input, and now we are expected to hastily dig through this lengthy document on short notice. Luckily, it does not take long to see all that is wrong with this bill. We are supposed to believe the intention of the bill is to counter China's economic aggression, but it does not even contain the word ``China'' in the title. This bill is actually just a long list of Progressive dream policies that have nothing to do with China at all. To illustrate, the words ``coral reef'' appears more times in this legislation than China does. What is worse is that that bill contains certain policies that would help China because it will hurt American companies. The bill's $52 billion in subsidies for the semiconductor industry would allow for a chip company working with the Chinese Communist Party to be eligible for those funds. The bill that supposedly combats China's economic aggression could actually send taxpayer funds to subsidize CCP's semiconductor industry. We could pass meaningful export and control policies. We could impose sanctions on the United Front Work Department, or even start with funding existing sanction enforcement at the Office of the Foreign Asset Control in the Treasury. We could completely ban Federal funding for colleges and universities that host Confucius Institutes. Instead, we are here to consider a bill that may actually be more detrimental for America than it is for China. I have to highlight some of the contradictions in this bill that so perfectly sum up the hypocrisy of the House Democrats and the administration. This bill includes the Reclaiming the Solar Supply Chain Act of 2021. My colleagues claim this will decrease energy reliance on China and will be better for the environment by subsidizing solar panel manufacturing. However, the left is also attacking domestic production of the minerals required to make these panels. We saw this just last week when the Biden administration canceled leases for a Minnesota company mining for critical minerals vital to domestic production of solar panels. The result is the U.S. is being forced to outsource these materials to China. China, who is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world and uses inhumane labor practices. How can we reclaim the solar supply chain while outsourcing these very jobs to China? This bill also requires U.S. implementation of the Paris Climate Agreement, but does not require the same of China. Another provision that makes it harder for American businesses to compete with unregulated Chinese competitors. This bill reflects the patterns of this administration. They claim we need to address climate change now, but then delay compliance with the renewable fuel standard that provides lower-emission fuel for our vehicle fleet. They cancel our domestic pipeline construction while allowing our adversaries to keep theirs. They don't mind activities that hurt the environment as long as the U.S. is keeping it in someone else's backyard, all while forcing American businesses to follow their restrictions. The majority of Americans agree, China is our biggest threat. We need good legislation to counter that threat. This bill proves the Democrats do not take this threat seriously. It has taken any decent policy options on the subject and buried them in a poison bills trying to push policy to cater to their Progressive base. We need to put forward a real bill that has gone through the appropriate committee process to include Republican input. Only then will we have legislation that deals with these issues seriously. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Madam Speaker, this bill is another attempt to force the far-left agenda. Only this time, the Democrats are using the very real threats we are facing from China in order to do it. Rather than focus attention on real action that can be taken against China, this bill has been pumped full of policies around climate change and other progressive dreams. My colleagues on the other side of the aisle need to open their eyes to the reality of the threat that China poses and not use important pieces of legislation to push their agenda. Madam Speaker, I oppose the rule and the underlying bills, and I ask Members to do the same. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Reschenthaler), who is an esteemed member of the Rules Committee.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Kim), who is my fellow freshman.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule allowing for the immediate consideration of H.R. 6184, the HALT Fentanyl Act. I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the Record, along with any extraneous materials, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Over 100,000 people died from fentanyl overdoses in a 1-year span, according to the CDC. That is a 30 percent increase from the year before. I think we can all agree that something must be done to put a stop to this heartbreaking epidemic. Fentanyl has been temporarily classified as a schedule I substance. This classification strengthens law enforcement's ability to prosecute fentanyl traffickers, and the DEA reports that it has acted as an effective deterrent. The temporary classification is set to expire on February 18, 2022. The HALT Fentanyl Act would make the schedule classification permanent and would also promote research by removing regulation to streamline the research process. We should do everything we possibly can to put an end to the devastation caused by fentanyl in this country. And the HALT Fentanyl Act is one piece of the puzzle that could make a real difference. To further explain this amendment, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Griffith), the author of the bill.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Cammack).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close unless the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Ross) has other speakers.

Mrs. FISCHBACH

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Mr. Speaker, I thank my great friend, Mr. Smith, and a great fighter for life for many years, and we appreciate all of his work on that. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mark the 49th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade tragedy and to remember the more than 60 million unborn lives it has taken and the tragic, irreversible mark it has left on countless mothers, fathers, and families. Every innocent life is precious, from conception until natural death, but for nearly five decades abortion has remained one of the greatest tragedies of our Nation. The Supreme Court now has the opportunity to right some of the terrible wrongs committed in this country against the unborn since Roe v. Wade. I pray for our Justices, that they make the right decision, for many lives will depend on it. We will continue to fight for the lives of unborn children.

Mrs. FISCHBACH

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, this resolution states clearly that the right to vote is fundamental to democracy, and that legitimate elections are those which are safe from foreign interference, including illegal votes from foreigners. The resolution denounces the practice by some cities in America of giving the right to vote to noncitizens, including foreigners who have violated our laws by being here illegally in the U.S. The resolution states firmly that the House of Representatives recognizes that allowing illegal immigrants the right to vote devalues the vote of every United States citizen. Madam Speaker, I present this amendment, and I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I would like to remind my colleague from Massachusetts that I believe in 2016 he also objected to certification of the election. It doesn't always sound like that when he speaks about the objections. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I thank the Representative from Massachusetts for yielding me the customary 30 minutes. Madam Speaker, today we were informed by the majority at the last minute that we would be brought in to discuss the NASA Enhanced Use Leasing Extension Act of 2021, which was amended by the Senate and will be amended yet again here in the House, if this rule passes. I don't think anyone here is surprised by yet another last-minute meeting, but I am starting to feel the effects from all of the whiplash over the last year. This time, House Democrats seek to insert the Freedom to Vote Act and the Voting Rights Advancement Act as a last- ditch effort to cater to the Senate majority's sporadic attempts to get something passed for their radical base, even though we all know neither of these bills will pass through the Senate. House Democrats and Senator Schumer still need bipartisan support for this partisan bill. And certain other Senators in their party have yet to cede to the fringe of their party and go nuclear on a longstanding Senate principle, the filibuster. Whatever the thought process behind this effort tonight, it is disappointing that it is yet another deeply partisan attempt to Federalize all elections. Madam Speaker, the Constitution places the responsibility for elections at the State level and has a long history of letting each State run their own elections. But H.R. 4, a component of this bill, would grant the Federal Government unprecedented control over State and local elections. It would empower the Attorney General to bully States and force them to seek Federal approval before making changes to their own voting laws. Madam Speaker, this is an assault on the rights of States and local governments to manage their own elections. The right to vote is one of our most fundamental rights as citizens. It is upsetting to see the majority take advantage of this important issue because they are so desperate to maintain their power. This can be seen almost explicitly in the Freedom to Vote Act, which includes a new campaign finance provision that would ensure certain candidates receive millions of dollars in public funding for running a campaign. The majority does not discuss this provision very often, but do the American people really want public dollars to go to fund campaigns? State oversight in elections is important. Like so many things, the majority fails to recognize what works best for one State is not necessarily going to work in another State or across the country. States know what practices work best for their voters, as they have done throughout history. It was not hard to find many flaws in this bill, and I was able to do so with less than an hour's time. But I remained disappointed in the priorities and practices of this majority. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Babin).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield the gentleman from Texas an additional 30 seconds.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Pfluger).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, I just want to remind everyone that the issue here is the Federal takeover of elections. The statement that was made was about someone objecting to the certification and how that was somehow wrong. I just wanted to simply remind my colleague that he himself had voted that way and many of the Democrats have, over the years, voted to object to certification. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Tenney).

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, Republicans will offer an amendment to the rule allowing for the immediate consideration of H. Res. 866. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record, along with extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mrs. FISCHBACH. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.