Jody Hice

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am grateful to the gentleman for chairing the Freedom Caucus, and we are grateful for his leadership and for having this Special Order tonight. I want to take a moment in my opening remarks to say thank you to those Supreme Court Justices who, right now, are experiencing tremendous and unjust treatment and intimidation from a radical left mob that is absolutely out of control. Many of us have been in the battle for life for decades. We are grateful, finally, that this horrendous stain on America's history is potentially coming to an end, and those who have stood for our Constitution, Supreme Court Justices Alito, Coney Barrett, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Thomas, we all take a moment to say a huge thank you to them for standing up for the Constitution, for standing up for the unborn, and doing the right thing. We want them to know that we and millions of other Americans are standing with them in deep gratitude this evening. Never should anyone in this country but, at this point, our Supreme Court Justices never, ever, ever should they be afraid of the leftist mob because they are doing their jobs as Supreme Court Justices to stand for the Constitution and to correct unconstitutional law in this case as it comes their way. Yet, now, they are facing great intimidation by the radical left agenda. We, millions of Americans, are absolutely disgusted by what we are watching on television as a result of what has already been described tonight, an unprecedented and I believe to be probably an intentional leak of Justice Alito's decision, the majority decision in this case, Dobbs v. Jackson. How in the world does that leak happen? We fully will get to the bottom of that with some investigations in the future. The behavior now of the left is unacceptable. It is illegal. It needs to be dealt with. There needs to be accountability. This is absolutely bringing out the worst of the radical left in this country, and I hope every American sees it. I hope they see it for what it is. Here is the Supreme Court Justices doing their job. There are three branches, equal branches, separate branches. This branch, the judicial branch, and, in this case, the Supreme Court are doing their job and facing the wrath of radical leftists simply because they don't like the decision. We have fallen so far as a country. We have come to the point that now we are willing to end innocent life and rip little baby boys or girls from their mothers' wombs. I mean, here we have 5 weeks, the child has a heartbeat; 10 weeks, arms, legs, fingers, toes; 15 weeks, a fully developed heart, capable of feeling pain. It is a child in the womb. It is absolutely amazing. Enough is enough. It is time that we hold these people accountable. It is time that we come behind our Supreme Court Justices. Whether anyone agrees with the decision or not, they are doing their job. We obviously agree with the decision. But they are doing their job, and they need to be protected. We cannot allow the highest court of our land and our Constitution to be put in jeopardy as it is now. Again, Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for leading this time, this Special Order, giving each of us an opportunity to stand for our Constitution, to stand for our Supreme Court, and to stand for life.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I, likewise, am deeply grateful for your leadership in putting this together. Mr. Speaker, this is a call for our entire country to come together. This should not be something that is wrapped up in partisan politics. We are talking about securing our border. Securing our border. Right now, we have a discharge petition to save title 42, unfortunately Democrats are refusing to support that discharge. I am calling on them tonight to come on, to sign on to the discharge and let's save title 42. This is in defense of our country and in defense of our national security.

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, there are zero, to my knowledge.

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am calling on them tonight--we are calling on them tonight to sign it. This is a national security issue. What is the problem here? It makes no sense to me. We have no Democrats that have signed on to this discharge petition. As you mentioned, we are now watching--and Mr. Good from Virginia as well--we are watching now the numbers soar to the point of more than doubling the maximum that we have had in the years past. In year 2000 we had 220,000 apprehensions, and now it is going to soar over 500,000. We are sitting back here in the people's House doing nothing about it. We are responsible as the governing body of this country to defend our borders. Right now, because of the surge that is taking place, Mr. Speaker, we are having Customs and Border Protection agents who are now being moved to process these illegal individuals. There are ICE agents who are being moved to process these individuals coming across our border. The U.S. Marshals are leaving the various places around this country where they are serving to go to our southern border to try to help with this crisis that has no business even being a crisis. Now, we have all these agents who are not even doing their job because they are processing illegal individuals coming across into this country. Now, we hear that DHS is calling on other Federal Government agencies to provide doctors. I don't know about you, but I don't know of many agencies in the Federal Government who have doctors. Where are they going to come from? Perhaps the Department of Defense. Certainly, there are some doctors in the VA. Let's say those doctors go to the southern border, then what happens to our veterans who now are lacking doctors to serve them? None of this makes any sense, and it leaves our entire country in a very vulnerable position. Mr. Speaker, I would just say that border security is an enormous component to national security, and if we do not have secure borders, we do not have a secure Nation. I am calling on our Democrats today to sign on to the discharge petition. Let's save title 42. For crying out loud, let's defend our borders and get over the partisan politics and do the right thing and defend our borders.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in memory of a great Georgian, a staunch conservative, a lifelong patriot, and a dear friend, Roy Roberts, Sr., from Walton County, Georgia. He was born in Atlanta, December 13, 1940. He was an incredible athlete, playing basketball for the University of Kentucky, where he was credited as being one of their all-time best defensive players. While at Kentucky, he met Suzanne Polk, and they married in 1963 before putting their roots in Monroe, Georgia. Roy was very active in his community. He was one of the biggest leaders in the Republican Party, which was his passion. In fact, in 2001, he became the chairman of Walton County Republican Party, which he proudly held that position for 20 years, leading Walton County's GOP to become one of the leading counties in our State. He was famous for hosting an incredible barbecue every year that drew hundreds of people, and every candidate in the Republican Party really had to be a part of that incredible event. Georgia lost a giant last week. I and Walton County lost a dear friend. We will miss Roy Roberts tremendously. To his family, we extend our heartfelt prayers and love.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to call up H.R. 471, the PAUSE Act, to protect all Americans from Biden's border crisis.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in objection to Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's appointment to the Supreme Court. She is an activist, not a constitutionalist. Repeatedly, she has reduced sentences for convicted child sex torturers and pornographers. One example, for an individual who deserved 10 years, she gave only 3 months of a sentence. She was in favor of an extended buffer zone around abortion clinics in Massachusetts, which is a blatant attempt to limit the free speech rights of peaceful protesters who stand for life. In her confirmation hearings, she would not even define the word ``woman,'' which is an indication of potential future attacks on religious liberties, among other things. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson would ensure a radical leftwing agenda on the Supreme Court for decades to come. America deserves better. America deserves a constitutional Justice on the Supreme Court. I urge my Senators from Georgia and other Senators to vote ``no'' on her confirmation.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Boy Scouts of America, Order of the Arrow program. The Order of the Arrow was founded on the highest ideals of the Boy Scouts of America as Scouting's national camping honor society. It recognizes Scouts who best exemplify the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives. Members of the Order of the Arrow are known for maintaining camping traditions and spirit, promoting year-round outdoor activities, and providing cheerful service to others. Each spring, the eleven Order of the Arrow Lodges in Georgia and Alabama come together for an annual conclave. The 2022 Conclave will be hosted at Camp Benjamin Hawkins in Byron, Georgia on the weekend of April 1. The weekend, steeped in tradition, will include fun, fellowship, and service. I extend my best wishes to the Scouts and Advisors participating in this Conclave, and I hope their experience will be memorable and enjoyable.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today on behalf of the American taxpayer to clarify that the Federal workforce exists to serve them, not the other way around. During the COVID pandemic, Americans faced uncertainties as businesses literally struggled to survive. While these Americans wondered whether or not they would receive the next paycheck, there was one group, Federal employees, who did not face these type of concerns. To the contrary, since President Biden took office, there has been a nonstop effort to ensure that Federal workers are treated like a protected, privileged class. Democrats like to talk about the need to rehabilitate Federal workers after the Trump administration's so-called war on civil servants. That is absolutely ridiculous. The Democrats' road to recovery apparently includes shielding government workers, workers whose positions exist to serve the American people. The Democrats want to shield government workers from accountability; from any concern of discipline; from the obligation to actually perform the duties that they were hired to do; and from their duty to serve the elected Representatives of the people. But guess what? Despite the claims of trauma during the Trump administration, Federal workers were happier during his time in office. Why? Simply because the Federal workers were held accountable. Let's face it: No one likes working in a situation where you can't do anything about poor performers, where you can't do anything regarding people who simply refuse to actually do their jobs. The consequences of that type of environment is that the actual conscientious workers have to pick up the slack, which only adds to their own workloads and creates an extremely toxic work environment. Nevertheless, Democrats want to continue the false narrative of an abused Federal workforce. They want to curry favor with the core union constituency by looking for as many ways as possible to increase pay and benefits, all under the name of making the Federal Government a model employer. But model employers hold their workforce accountable. Model employers put the customer first. In this case, that is the American taxpayer. We don't hear any of this from the Democrats, but you do from the Republicans. Today, along with a number of my Republican colleagues, I am introducing the Accountable Federal Employees Act, which codifies a suite of executive orders that President Trump issued, but, unfortunately, President Biden has repealed. This bill includes a number of commonsense provisions, such as making sure Federal employees actually do their jobs rather than spend time on union activities. It makes sure that poor performers are held accountable. That is something even Federal employees say is sorely lacking in the workplace. It creates a process to ensure collective bargaining agreements are negotiated in a timely manner and in a way that looks out for the best interests of the American taxpayer. It makes sure that Federal employees in policy-making roles actually work to help implement the policies of the people who were actually elected to office. This bill represents a platform of sanity and fairness in civil service policy and in the workforce of the Federal Government. Frankly, any serious effort to modernize the Federal workforce has to start with ensuring the best possible level of service for the American people. That is what this bill does. I urge my colleagues to join me in this effort.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Baldwin County Schools Superintendent Dr. Noris Price for being named the Georgia 2022 Superintendent of the Year. Dr. Price has more than 35 years of experience in public education. She has served as an Associate Superintendent for Clarke County Schools, a Principle in Fairfax, Virginia, and as an elementary school teacher in New York City. Dr. Price was selected by the Georgia School Superintendents Association for her leadership ability, communication skills, and unwavering dedication to education. During her tenure in Baldwin County, Dr. Price made tremendous strides to increase the high school graduation rate from 66 percent to 90 percent. She is also responsible for securing more than $ eight million in grants for Baldwin County Schools. This year brings additional recognition for Dr. Price's success and dedication as she was named a top four finalist for the 2022 U.S. National Superintendent of the Year award. These educators represent the bold and innovative work that is needed to ensure student success in communities across the country. I am proud of Dr. Price's dedication to the future generation of Georgia's 10th Congressional District, and I wish her continued success.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor our brave law enforcement officers at the United States Park Police. From every major protest to every parade that occurs on the National Mall, our Park Police officers answer the call to keep our constituents safe when they are visiting here in the Nation's capital. However, due to an increase in the number of demonstrations and the fact that they are extremely understaffed, one of our Nation's oldest uniformed Federal law enforcement agencies is now stretched extremely thin. As of March 1, 2021, there were fewer than 500 Park Police officers. That is significantly lower than the minimum requirement they have of 639 officers. This is alarming, and obviously, among other concerns, this leaves the Nation's most historic landmarks extremely vulnerable. And that is why today, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3924, the U.S. Park Police Modernization Act. And what is the problem? Why are they facing the issues that they are facing? Well, the bottom line, for whatever reason, is because the pay and benefits are much lower for the Park Police than for other Federal law enforcement agencies. And the big question is why is that the case? That is an outstanding question. Why? There is no real good reason. And it is for that reason that we, here in Congress, need to immediately improve the Park Police's pay and benefits and to put that agency on equal footing with other similar departments. To do so would incentivize officers to both join the Park Police, but even more importantly, to stay. Both of those issues are huge concerns right now. That is how we will ensure that Washington, D.C., the place where each of us work, the place where our staff works, and obviously, where many of our constituents come to visit, remain safe for years to come. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3924. Let's put our U.S. Park Police on equal footing with other law enforcement agencies in this area so that they can do the job that we all depend upon them to do.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate this year's college football national championship team, the Georgia Bulldogs. For the first time since 1980, the Bulldogs are bringing the college football national championship trophy back to Athens, Georgia, after beating the Alabama Crimson Tide by a score of 33-18 this past Monday. I could not be more proud of the Dawgs for showing all of us the true definition of heart, of character, and of dedication. After losing to the Crimson Tide in the SEC championship game a few weeks back, the Bulldogs worked, they prepared, they practiced with intense focus in order to come back and win the national championship. This team really gave us everything they had. They put it all on the field, and I am humbled to represent the University of Georgia and the 10th Congressional District of Georgia. The Dawg spirit never ceases to amaze me. I want to extend sincere congratulations to the entire team, to Coach Kirby Smart and his coaching staff, and to the entire Dawg Nation. Go Dawgs. Congratulations. It has been a great season.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted NAY on Roll Call No. 449.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Lamborn for organizing this Special Order. The Scripture tells us in Psalm 100 that God is good, that His mercies are everlasting, that His truth endures to all generations, and that truth is revealed to us in God's Word. This week we will see communities and churches and leaders all across the country celebrating National Bible Week for its importance in the role and life of our country and us as individuals. I believe that we, as political leaders, have the responsibility to remind America and our citizens of the significance of the Bible in our history, our life, and our culture. It is impossible to accurately describe the history of America without including the history of the Bible and its impact on our Founders and the impact it can have on us today. I think of all the magnificent truths of God's Word, which I begin every day in, all the incredible things, the wisdom, the splendor of it all, but I think the most important thing ever that has transformed my life is how God took my sins away. The Scripture describes for us in Isaiah 53 that all of us, like sheep, had gone astray, that all of us had sin, heaped upon sin, but that God laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all. That is the story of the great love and the mercy of God, where He who was sinless took upon Himself our sins and made the pathway for us to have forgiveness and peace with God, both now and forever more. I urge my colleagues to be open and receptive to the love of God, to the forgiveness of God. I urge our country to be receptive to the Word of God, the truth of God. The blessings of God await us as a Nation as we return to the truths of His Word.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, the House Democrats have done this. It is all one big party. And while we are going to be celebrating Thanksgiving next week, families gather together giving thanks, I am absolutely confident there will not be one family in America giving thanks for the economic crisis created by President Joe Biden and the Democrats--the crisis, economically, that they are serving the American people. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this is going to be the most expensive Thanksgiving in history. From turkey to potatoes, pumpkin pie--you name it--this is going to be the most expensive Thanksgiving ever; probably a whole lot fewer second trips for food, or thirds, or whatever your family is accustomed to. Meanwhile, what is the answer that our Democrat friends are giving us? Democrats here in Washington have a great solution: Let's spend trillions of more dollars. Let's make inflation go up even more. Let's put more pain and suffering around the Thanksgiving tables and the pocketbooks of the American people. While Americans are pinching their pennies, literally, to live within their means, President Biden and his socialist cronies from the other side of the aisle here in Washington are wanting to spend even more of the hard-earned money of the American taxpayer and the American worker. The Democrat socialist gravy train has left the station, and the American people, I assure you, are not at the table. They are not on board with what is happening in this country. Americans are the ones paying the price for this. They are paying the price for President Biden's budget-busting policies--more money at the gas pumps, more money at the Thanksgiving table this year, more money for everyday goods. We can go down the list. It is high time--it is past time--that President Biden and the Democrats stop this reckless, runaway spending. Our economy cannot afford trillions more dollars that we don't have for unnecessary spending for socialist, Marxist spending, robbing us not only of our hard-earned income but our liberties, our freedoms that we love and cherish in this country. It is time that we put a stop to this nonsense.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank my dear friend from Louisiana for yielding. We are here this evening to recognize, but most importantly, to defend the sanctity of human life, something that once again is under attack in this House. In response to the left's adamant desire for abortion legislation, Speaker Pelosi is demanding that we vote on H.R. 3755 to allow abortion at any time during a pregnancy. The left wants to, in addition, strip away the rights of States to protect the lives of unborn children. This is abortion on demand, and quite frankly, the Democrats don't care if the unborn child has a fully developed heart. They don't care if it has arms or legs or fingers or toes. They don't care if it feels pain. They want abortion, period, and they want to finance it with your tax dollars. Time and time again, the Democrats in Congress stand in the way of those of us who are trying to protect the lives of those who cannot protect themselves. Eliminating innocent human life is despicable. It is outright evil. And I for one am tired of the left continually sacrificing the lives of the unborn on the altar of their progressive ideals. We cannot give up this fight. We cannot turn a blind eye. We must defend the sanctity of life and the unborn. Never, and I mean never, will we falter in this duty. I stand in strong opposition along with my colleagues to H.R. 3755. Life is sacred. It is a fundamental and divine right that is gifted to every single human being, and we will always stand against the abortion industry and fight. Life and the right to life is something that only God almighty gives, and it is something that our Constitution guarantees. So help us God to stand for it.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today as a staunch defender of the rights of the unborn, as a defender of the idea that human life begins at conception. But these ideals are being threatened today like never before. This week, I join my fellow Republicans in speaking out in support of the Hyde amendment and other pro-life provisions stripped from appropriations bills by the Democratic majority. The Hyde amendment is and has been a bipartisan provision included in every Federal spending measure for the past four decades. It has ensured that the lives of the unborn are protected and that no Federal tax dollars are used to fund abortions. Very simply, the Hyde amendment saves lives. I am committed to ending the blight of abortion on our Nation and to stand with all I have to fight to protect the rights and the lives of the unborn. My Democratic colleagues are great at changing terms and changing names. By definition, healthcare protects and improves lives, yet Democrats changed ``healthcare'' to include abortion. But abortion does not improve or defend life; it takes life. It is not healthcare. For this reason, Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committees on Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 18, and I ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. HICE of Georgia

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.