Hank Johnson

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson), the chair of the Homeland Security Committee.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the distinguished majority leader of this House of Representatives.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, it amuses me when my friends on the other side cause the public to believe that there are people coming across our border, trying to sneak in, when the truth of the matter is the people who are presenting themselves at our southern border, primarily, are people fleeing violence in Central America, families, women, children fleeing violence in Central America, presenting themselves at lawful points of entry, not trying to jump the Rio Grande, but at lawful points of entry, and seeking to apply for asylum. That is the emergency that my friends on the other side tried to make into something that would be such that President Trump is authorized to spend moneys that have not been appropriated, and it is a farce. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis), my dear colleague.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I recall that the last 2 years have been spent under the unified control of Republicans--both Houses of Congress and the President--yet there was no emergency to construct the $5 billion down payment on a border wall that is going to cost about $30 billion. They didn't do it then; they want us to do it now-- or they want Trump to actually be able to do it without the legislature. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from the great State of Texas (Ms. Escobar).

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Cisneros), my good friend.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time is remaining?

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, it is harder for me to imagine how a big, beautiful wall will somehow bestow upon us knowledge that people are jumping over it or going under it. Those kinds of things do not work across the entire border. That may have its place at some points, and I am sure we have border wall and border fencing in the locations where it is necessary, but in the other locations, we need--in addition to more Border Patrol officers who are paid a living wage--we need the technology and the other assets that can surveil and help with the apprehension of people who are coming across the border at points that are not legal points of entry. But the point is, today's crisis that faces the people of Central America and drives them to our southern border is driving them to lawful points of entry to seek asylum protection under this Nation's laws, and that is something that they are entitled to. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I believe that most learned colleagues in this Chamber understand that under U.S. law, we have granted persons approaching our border the right to apply for asylum. That doesn't mean that asylum will be granted, but they certainly have the right to apply for it. It is the humane thing to do in a civilized society. This is the law that America has proceeded under for centuries, and now we have a naked power grab by the chief executive of this great Nation, the President of the United States, seeking to do the job of the legislative branch, and his own job. But there is a problem. It is only the legislative branch that appropriates funding for various occurrences. The legislative branch has not given this President what he has sought; that is, a down payment on a border wall, which is a monument to a campaign promise that he made. This legislature has not given him that authority, and so in a naked power grab, he is seeking to do it by declaring an emergency when, in fact, no emergency exists. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), my friend, and a staunch advocate for the people of Washington, D.C.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the Speaker of this great House.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, in approving the joint resolution terminating President Trump's illegal power grab, the House will make clear that nothing is more fundamental to the functioning of our democracy than the separation of powers among three coequal branches of government. The facts are clear. President Trump failed to convince a skeptical Congress to pay for an ineffective border wall. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, but I must ask you to ask yourself this question: Will you allow your solemn vow of loyalty to President Trump to override your oath of office and your vow of fidelity to the Constitution? Vote to support this resolution. Mr. Speaker, I yield back balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Rare Disease Week. Around 350 million people, worldwide, suffer from a rare disease. That is more than the number of people who live in the United States, alone, and it is particularly alarming when we consider how few resources are available to those battling a rare disease. In fact, of the 7,000 rare diseases in existence, half of them don't have a designated foundation or research support group, and nearly 90 percent lack an FDA-approved treatment. As a member of the Rare Disease Congressional Caucus, I urge my colleagues to support measures that would increase funding for research and put our resources into the development and accessibility of lifesaving treatments. Treatments should not be as rare as the diseases they heal.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, in recent years, some Americans suspect that politics has infected our courts, particularly the United States Supreme Court. This troubling trend threatens our democracy when the independence of our judiciary is questioned. Last week, I introduced a bill that requires the Judicial Conference of the United States to create a code of ethical conduct for the U.S. Supreme Court. Unlike Federal judges, Supreme Court Justices are exempt from the code of conduct. The Supreme Court Ethics Act changes that. Supreme Court Justices should not be exempt from adhering to the standards other Federal judges must follow. Passage of this necessary ethical reform would restore the public's confidence and perception that the judiciary is independent, impartial, and apolitical; and it would protect public confidence in the rule of law, the inviolability of the judiciary and the incomparable and unique role it plays in the delicate system of checks and balances that sustains our democracy.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in support of H.R. 494, the Tiffany Joslyn Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2019. We cannot, as a nation, continue to condemn our children into the criminal justice system. African American youth are significantly more likely to be tried as adults. In 2014, although Black youth were only 14 percent of the juvenile population, they represented 52 percent of the youth tried as adults in this country. This legislation reauthorizes important programs that ensure sentences for our young people are appropriate and not excessive, and it funds accountability-based programs to intervene when youth are most vulnerable in the system. I support this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 439) to amend the charter of the Future Farmers of America, and for other purposes.

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

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I yield myself as much time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 439, a bipartisan bill to update and modernize the Federal charter of the National FFA Organization. The FFA, formally known as the Future Farmers of America, is a dynamic youth organization that uses agricultural education and leadership training to promote the personal growth and career successes of its members. With chapters in every State of the Union, its members are the country's future chemists, veterinarians, government officials, entrepreneurs, bankers, international business leaders, teachers, and other professionals across a wide array of career fields. The bill simply updates the FFA's charter to make it more consistent with the modern organization and to provide additional flexibility as it looks toward the future. Among other things, the bill recognizes changes to the organization's name. It modifies the organization's purpose to better reflect trends in education and leadership training. It allows the FFA to publish materials in electronic form rather than in printed form and provides flexibility as to the location of the FFA's headquarters. These are important changes to the existing charter that will help the FFA better carry out its mission for years to come. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for H.R. 439. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to acknowledge the leadership and commitment of my colleagues, Jim Langevin of Rhode Island and Glenn Thompson of Pennsylvania, for working together on a bipartisan bill to fashion this bill. I support H.R. 439 even more after listening to the comments of my fellow Georgian about his daughter and the assistance and care that this organization has rendered to her and probably countless others even in more need of their support. So, Mr. Speaker, I support organizations such as FFA. I support this legislation, I ask my colleagues to support it too, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 498) to eliminate unused sections of the United States Code, and for other purposes.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. 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 bill under consideration.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 498, the Clean Up the Code Act. I support this measure because it represents a small yet meaningful step toward addressing the problem of over-criminalization. H.R. 498 repeals several criminal penalties for violations that do not involve serious wrongdoing, at least not serious enough to warrant criminal prosecution or the consequences of a criminal record. Specifically, the bill decriminalizes the transportation of water hyacinths, the unauthorized application of theft prevention decals or devices, and the unauthorized use of the 4-H Club emblem; the Swiss Confederation coat of arms; the ``Smokey Bear'' character or name; the ``Woodsy Owl'' character, name, or slogan; or the ``Golden Eagle Insignia.'' The conduct that these laws are designed to deter or punish simply does not merit criminal sanctions. This bill repeals a number of these obscure and unnecessary criminal provisions. Criminal penalties should be reserved to deter offenses that jeopardize public safety or as punishment for serious moral transgressions. Such penalties should not be used to punish minor transgressions or to discourage behavior deemed unwanted but ultimately harmless to the greater public good. Therefore, while H.R. 498 is a modest step toward addressing the problem of over- criminalization, I support its adoption by the House today. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the efforts of my colleague, Representative Steve Chabot, who is the author of this measure and who shepherded it to House passage last year with 385 votes in favor. I was the lead cosponsor of the bill last Congress, and I am pleased again to serve in that role for this bipartisan legislation. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for it today, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Houston, Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).