Alexander Mooney

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, the United States is facing an inflation and debt crisis not seen in over 40 years. West Virginians have seen the value of their savings erode before their very eyes because of reckless tax-and-spend policies. We know who is responsible for the current inflation crisis, but what in our country's history has allowed us to get to this point? The answer can actually be traced back to 1971, when President Nixon took the United States off the gold standard. The gold standard means tying the dollar directly to the value of gold. Under the gold standard, any American would be able to trade their dollars for a fixed amount of gold. By linking the dollar to the value of gold, the money supply could only be increased if the supply of gold increases. This connects and protects the purchasing power of your dollars. That is why I introduced legislation to return the United States to the gold standard. Had we been on the gold standard or some other fixed standard, we would not be in the inflation crisis we are in today. I look forward to working with the Republican majority to make sure this issue gets attention.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, as a competitive college rugby player at Dartmouth College, I picked up a love for the game of rugby. I continue to enjoy watching the sport as a Member of the U.S. Congress. I proudly serve as the co-chair of the Congressional Rugby Caucus, and I am honored to be an advocate for the Rugby World Cup. I am thrilled to rise today to celebrate that the United States has been named the host site of both the 2031 Men's Rugby World Cup and the 2033 Women's Rugby World Cup, a monumental accomplishment that brings the third largest sporting event in the world to our shores. Earlier this year, my caucus co-chair, Democrat Eleanor Holmes Norton, and I introduced a bipartisan concurrent resolution to recognize and support the efforts of USA Rugby and its partners to bring upcoming Rugby World Cup tournaments to the United States. Rugby is one of the fastest growing sports in the United States with more than 100,000 USA Rugby members playing in over 2,500 clubs nationwide. The United States possesses all the necessary state-of-the-art infrastructure in its stadiums and potential host cities to ensure that the tournaments set a new standard of quality, comfort, security, and safety for players, fans, and sponsors. The eventual location of U.S.- based Rugby World Cup events will be chosen from a group of over one dozen cities in the United States. Rugby is about so much more than the tailgaiting and tackling. At its core, rugby teaches comradery, resilience, and respect for the opposition. It is also a sport with a massive international reach. With rugby boasting 405 million fans across the globe, the Men's Rugby World Cup has become among the most popular sporting events in the world. I congratulate all the hardworking individuals at USA Rugby who have spent a huge amount of time and effort on the lengthy and involved bid process. I would also like to recognize the efforts and vision of the leadership from World Rugby and the World Rugby Council. This moment marks a pivotal turning point for the sport of rugby in the United States and around the world. This will be the first time a Men's Rugby World Cup has been held in North or South America. A new hosting concept has been put in place as the United States stages consecutive men's and women's events within the same organizational structure. A projected 4.1 million fans will attend both the men's and women's Rugby World Cup events in the United States. Recent Rugby World Cup tournaments have brought more than 242,000 international fans from around the world into the host countries and seen more than 1.7 million spectators flock to the stadiums, generating significant revenue at the local and national level. USA and World Rugby will now lead a multi-year effort to build anticipation for 2031 and 2033 while developing infrastructure to guarantee successful tournaments. Additionally, USA Rugby will use the next decade to drive significant investment in the game at the youth level, increase access to and diversity in rugby, take rugby to the next level at the high school and college levels, and grow USA Rugby membership to 450,000 members. Bringing this event home is great news for our country and for the future of the great sport of rugby in our Nation. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Arizona for yielding.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, today I rise to share the story of an American patriot from Charles Town, West Virginia, which is where I live. Corporal Frank Buckles lived to be 110 years old. He died in 2011 and was America's last known World War I veteran. Buckles had enlisted in the Army by giving his age as 18 rather than his actual age of 16. He drove an Army ambulance in France in 1918 and came to symbolize a generation of embattled young Americans as the last of the World War I doughboys. Buckles later spent 3 years as a Japanese prisoner of war during World War II after being captured in the Pacific while serving as a U.S. contractor. Buckles lived on a 330-acre West Virginia cattle farm, where he drove a tractor until 102 years old. I am honored to introduce legislation to designate the United States Postal Service located in Charles Town, West Virginia, as the ``Corporal Frank Buckles Post Office.'' He was a true patriot and is most deserving of this honor in the town he called home for 50 years.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Schweikert) for yielding me time. Mr. Speaker, one of the latest partisan games being pushed by the radical left is the call for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from certain cases or face impeachment. These demands stem from an email and other digital private communications of Justice Thomas' wife to and from government officials at the time. If it becomes the standard that an elected official or a judge or a commissioner or other government appointees can be attacked because of the views and political actions of a spouse, then everyone is fair game. How many members of the Democratic Caucus would like to be held accountable for the politics or actions of their spouse? How many governors, State legislators, or judges at any level would be able to withstand an assault based on the beliefs of their husband or wife? No good will come of this effort. There are those who argue that the radical left wants such a toxic environment. The feeling is that those who wish to radically transform America know that they are facing a harsh verdict from the American people come this November. These activist partisans are willing to literally throw our country into a frenzy of hate, suspicion, and personal vendetta in order to divert attention from the failure of their policies. I pray that the members of the Democratic Caucus making these extremist demands are ignored and that statesmen can take the lead. But if, once again, the Democrat leadership is so beholden to the extremist fringe that they send us into such a fight, you will not succeed. I thank the gentleman from Arizona for yielding me the time.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, I stand before you to share a story of West Virginia's Second Congressional District's own hometown hero, Tyler Baldwin. Tyler Baldwin is a 17-year-old young man from Newville, West Virginia, who risked his own life to rush into his neighbor's burning home. On the morning of November 29, 2021, Tyler was going through his daily routine of getting ready for school, and he noticed his neighbor's house was on fire. He knew his neighbor had mobility issues. Without hesitation, Tyler sprinted into the blaze and smoke and helped his neighbor escape. Tyler was treated for minor injuries, and the homeowner was shaken up but okay. It is an honor for my staff and me to present Tyler with a formal letter of gratitude and a Congressional Certificate of Recognition at a ceremony put together by his school. I want to thank him for selflessly putting others first and congratulate him on being an upstanding citizen in his community.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, soon the Supreme Court will rule on the challenge to the Texas abortion law case. The law implements the Nation's toughest restrictions on abortions. Signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott in May, it prohibits abortion after a heartbeat is detected in the unborn child. This usually occurs around 6 weeks. The law makes exceptions for medical emergencies. The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing challenges to this bill by pro- abortion groups that want the law overturned. The upcoming ruling will be closely watched as an indicator as to whether the Federal courts will uphold future States' rights to implement pro-life legislation rather than continuing to overreach their Federal court authority. Unborn babies are human lives. All too often, abortion is referred to as simply a medical procedure, and the sanctity of life is devalued. At 6 weeks, an unborn child has a heartbeat of approximately 98 beats per minute. Blood vessels begin to form in the circulatory system, and the brain is rapidly developing. This is a human life. By 10 weeks, an unborn baby has arms and legs, fingers and toes. The baby's pain receptors have been developing for weeks. This is a human life. By 15 weeks, all the unborn baby's major organs have formed, and the baby has a fully developed heart that pumps 26 quarts of blood per day. The baby can feel pain. All too often, these facts are overlooked and sidelined and not even addressed in the issue of abortion. It is my hope that the U.S. Supreme Court will see the merits as to why the State of Texas heartbeat bill was implemented. According to CDC statistics, 619,591 babies were aborted in the United States in 2018. That is 619,591 lives that could have been the next teacher, firefighter, parent, or President of the United States. Upholding the heartbeat bill would save the lives of countless unborn babies, both male and female. Here in Congress, I continue to be the protector of life and champion for the Hyde amendment in Federal legislation. Taxpayer money should not be used to end the lives of innocent, defenseless babies with beating hearts. The right to life is our most fundamental, natural, and God-given right. I will continue to fight to oppose pro-abortion plans to force taxpayer funding for abortion. Your taxpayer dollars should never be used to be funding abortion on demand. Mr. Speaker, I believe in the sanctity of life, and I will continue to fight for the rights of preborn babies.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Craig Brandenburg, a true public servant, on his retirement following five decades within the federal government. The majority of Craig's career was spent as a civilian employee within the United States Navy. Most recently he has served as the Director of Business Operations for Logistics, Maintenance, and Industrial Operations at Naval Sea Systems Command. In this capacity he has been responsible for policy development, mission direction, program execution, operation and evaluation of naval ship life cycle logistics, information systems, and corporate leadership of the Naval Shipyards, and Supervisors of Shipbuilding. You could say he has come a long way from his beginnings with the federal government as a typist with the National Archives in the 1970s. Throughout his long career, Craig has championed cutting-edge ideas, coordinated Navy-wide support of sailor's and their family's needs, and overseen a variety of efforts to include billion dollar programs. Thanks to his strategic leveraging of IT solutions, the warfighter can now reach out and touch the shore-based infrastructure anytime any day. In fact, we have Craig to thank for many new and groundbreaking developments within the United States Navy. In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the Navy, Craig has received the Chief Information Officer eBusiness Government Award, the Civilian Meritorious Achievement Medal, the National Partnership for Reinventing Government Vice President Hammer Award, the CNO's VADM Stanley Arthur Logistics Excellence Award, and the American Society of Naval Engineers Clifford G. Geiger Award recognizing his 25 years of significant career contributions to logistics readiness of the Naval services. Craig managed many large programs throughout his impressive career, but his true passion was for leading those who worked for him. He has touched many programs and many people, and I know he will be missed by them all. I thank Craig for his contributions to this country and congratulations on his retirement. We know that his family and his children Lauren and Connor are proud of his accomplishments.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, as co-chair of the Congressional Rugby Caucus, along with D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, I am very excited to see the legendary New Zealand All Blacks take the pitch against the U.S.A. men's national rugby team when they face off this Saturday, October 23. We hope to pack FedExField here in the D.C. area. The All Blacks of New Zealand are the world's most famous rugby club. They strike fear in their opponents with their world-famous traditional pregame war dance, called the haka. As a bonus, the Army Black Knights will face off against the U.S. Naval Academy Midshipmen in the curtain-raiser match. Men's and women's rugby are fast-growing sports in America and give us all a chance to put partisan politics aside. That is why bringing an international event of this magnitude to the D.C. area is a tremendous accomplishment for U.S.A. Rugby, Events D.C., and Left Field Live. The match is an important barometer of the United States' ability to host future world-class events, including the Rugby World Cup. Please support the game of rugby by joining me this Saturday, October 23, here in D.C. at FedExField.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to address the topic of the recent protests in Cuba, where individuals there are simply asking for freedom and liberty. My mother is one of 14 children. Her maiden name is Suarez, Eulalia Maria Suarez. She came from Cuba at 20 years old in 1961. My mother and my father raised me to defend freedom, freedom of speech. My father fought in Vietnam against the communist advance there. What we in America sometimes don't realize is, many other countries, especially communist countries that are tyrannical like Cuba, do not enjoy the basic human rights that we enjoy in this country and many other people in the world enjoy. Those rights, such as free speech and uncensored internet access, they don't have that in Cuba. Freedom of the press, freedom to protest, freedom to criticize your government, the right to vote in an actual election with more than one candidate who doesn't get 100 percent of the vote, they don't have those rights in Cuba. What they have is a tyrannical, evil regime that oppresses their people every day. They arrest demonstrators. We saw brave men and women in Cuba for the first time since 1994, almost 30 years, thousands of brave men and women, people in Cuba, protesting against their government, asking for freedoms, asking for basic rights like the ones I just mentioned that they don't have. What did they do? They all got arrested. They put them in jail. They say it is for a year. When that year goes by, when the regime in Cuba hopes nobody else is looking, they are going to make it 5 years. And they abuse them in jail. That is what happens to protesters in these types of countries. Now, look, I want to say that I actually agree with Joe Biden on this, on what he said. Joe Biden said, on July 12, this year, and I am going to quote him: ``We stand with the Cuban people and their clarion call for freedom and relief from the tragic grip of the pandemic and from the decades of repression and economic suffering to which they have been subjected by Cuba's authoritarian regime. The Cuban people are bravely asserting fundamental and universal rights.'' President Biden continues: ``Those rights, including the right of peaceful protest and the right to freely determine their own future, must be respected. The United States calls on the Cuban regime to hear their people and serve their needs at this vital moment rather than enriching themselves.'' Look, President Biden and, unfortunately not all, but many, Democrats and Republicans agree on this issue, but we need aggressive solutions to the issue. If the United States of America does not lead, no one else will. They are looking to us for leadership. They are looking to President Biden for leadership. They are looking to Congress for leadership. We need every freedom-loving country to condemn this evil, tyrannical regime and their constant abuses of their people. America and other countries should not do business with this Communist regime. As Biden himself said, they will only ``enrich themselves,'' and that is what they do. Instead, we should use every pressure point we can to defend freedom and the basic rights for the Cuban people. This is a heartfelt issue for many. We enjoy these freedoms, and sometimes we forget how tough it is and how much support people need in struggling countries like Cuba. Right now is the time to show strong support for the people of Cuba and for their basic human rights.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall No. 181.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss our most fundamental God-given right, our right to life. Enshrined in our Declaration of Independence is life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Our government should reflect this commitment to life, but the continued practice of abortion-on-demand across the country runs contrary to this commitment. Abortion deprives innocent, defenseless, unborn babies of their right to life. Thankfully, there are certain legal protections, like the Hyde amendment, in place to safeguard hardworking Americans' tax dollars and save lives. The Hyde amendment simply prevents the taxpayer funding of abortions. Since 1976, the Hyde amendment has saved 2.5 million lives. According to a Marist poll taken this year, the vast majority of Republicans and Independents, and nearly a third of Democrats, believe that tax dollars should not be used to pay for abortions. Since 1976, Republican and Democrat Members of Congress have found agreement in keeping the Hyde amendment. President Biden himself publicly supported the Hyde amendment for decades. In a 1977 letter to constituents, which I have right here, Senator Biden wrote that voting to support the Hyde amendment ``is the position which I have consistently supported.'' He goes on to say: ``The Senate, however, passed a broader definition of the circumstances under which Medicaid funds could be used to pay for an abortion. I did not support this version.'' Those are Senator Biden's words. Furthermore, in 1994, in another letter to a constituent at the time, Senator Biden upheld his support of Hyde protections, saying: ``Those of us who are opposed to abortion should not be compelled to pay for them.'' But today, President Biden has kowtowed to the radical left and has removed Hyde protections from his budget proposal. President Biden is turning his back on innocent life in their mother's womb. The Hyde amendment has saved millions of lives and has stopped Americans who are morally opposed to abortion from being forced to pay for it. I call on President Biden to return to his previous position, which opposed the taxpayer funding of abortion, abide by the teaching of his own self-professed Catholic faith, and follow the lead of his predecessors from both sides of the aisle who preserved the Hyde amendment in their Presidential budget proposals.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address an issue of great importance to all of our constituents: their economic livelihoods. It has only been 6 months since President Biden took office and already our country is moving in the wrong direction. Under President Trump we saw unparalleled economic growth. Now under President Biden, we are faced with more and more government spending, fewer and fewer people going back to work, and skyrocketing inflation, which devalues your money. You can see here, a picture is worth a thousand words. 4.2 less percent value to your dollar today after all the spending the government has been doing here lately. By the end of 2020, the economy was resurgent. And since the economy was crippled by the initial lock-downs in March and April of 2020, there had been an improvement in the unemployment rate each month, until this spring. After 11 months of significant job growth, the unemployment rate increased this past April for the first time since last year. More Americans are getting vaccinated every day and COVID-19 restrictions are being lifted around the country. This should be a time when the recovery reaches new heights. There were 9.3 million jobs openings in April. That is more job openings than any other time in the last year. But those jobs may not get filled any time soon, due to President Biden and many of my Democrat colleagues' and friends' decision here in this Chamber to continue an unsustainable level of Federal unemployment benefits. Some workers can make more money on unemployment than going back to work. Commonsense dictates that if you pay people not to work, they will take you up on it. Most people will not act against their own economic interests by working if they can make more money staying home. The failure of the Biden administration has forced some Governors to act on their own. So far, 25 States have announced plans to wind down the extra $300 a week in Federal unemployment benefits. Governor Jim Justice in my State of West Virginia announced that our State will join that group here this month, in June. So when Federal leadership fails, Governors must step up and make the best decisions for their States. West Virginia has had a particular problem with worker shortages for years now. Gil White, who is our State Director of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, was asked on WV MetroNews about the worker shortage, and he responded, ``That is not a myth; it's a reality. I don't care if it's large business or small business employers. I think there is a common theme that finding workers is very challenging, to say the least.'' After a tumultuous year with government shutdowns and strict capacity limits, the last thing small businesses need is a worker shortage that leaves them unprepared to meet the demands of a reopening economy. President Biden's solution to this problem, along with every other problem, seems to be more spending of your hard-earned taxpayer dollars. But with our budget deficit at an alarming level, and you see it here how it is just skyrocketing, our budget deficit, more spending will bring about more problems. Our debt is currently $28 trillion, and our deficits have grown substantially larger in the past year due to spending increases in response to COVID-19. And, yet, President Biden is currently pushing for more than $4 trillion in new spending. $4 trillion. President Biden has proposed to build hundreds of thousands of electric vehicle charging stations, retrofit buildings across America, to make them greener, and a laundry list of other progressive priorities. Despite his sometimes moderate demeanor, President Biden's platform is far left. President Biden made a long list of promises to the left wing of his party, like when he said he would ``get rid of fossil fuels.'' It should come as no surprise that his administration is shaping up to be the most liberal in recent memory. We should not keep borrowing money from China in order to spend money that we don't have here in America. There is a simple solution, unwind these expensive government programs, continue opening up the economy, and let people earn a living again. That is our country's path forward. Mr. Speaker, I have a couple more comments I would like to make on a separate issue. I rise today to address the crisis at the southern border. These images here show children being dropped over the border fence, and show migrants nearly drowning trying to cross the river on the border. Ladies and gentlemen, dumping children across a fence like this into the wilderness is not an immigration policy. That is child abuse. That is not how we are supposed to do this. It is an outrage. If President Trump had done that, he would be attacked everywhere. The border crisis is a humanitarian crisis. Even the President of Guatemala, Alejandro Giammattei, blamed the Biden administration's open border messaging calling it ``lukewarm'' and ``confusing.'' He explained this messaging actually increases the number of unaccompanied minors that are sent out on the journey and are subsequently trafficked by coyotes and cartels. Data shows that Customs and Border Patrol agents stopped over 180,000 illegal border crossings in the month of May alone, the highest in over 20 years. Look, we can have our own opinions, but we are not entitled to our own facts. This is a crisis, ladies and gentlemen. It is time for America's border czar, Vice President Kamala Harris, to do her job and address the humanitarian crisis at the border to protect to lives of these young children.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, today, I have the privilege of recognizing one of the millions of hardworking, taxpaying Americans who form the foundation of our Nation's economy through their employment in small business--in this particular case, the healthcare industry. Mrs. Teri Topping of Elkins, West Virginia, has served her patients exceptionally well throughout her distinguished career as an orthopedic nurse manager. As a result, Mrs. Topping is beloved by her community for the conscientious care that she has provided to those in need. Her outstanding performance has helped her local hospital, the Davis Memorial Hospital in Elkins, West Virginia, become one of the best hospitals for joint care in the entire Mountain State. It is hardly surprising that Mrs. Topping's patients illustrated their deep appreciation for her incredible efforts when the Inter- Mountain's 2021 People's Choice Awards opened balloting to the public. In a heartwarming display, those graced by Mrs. Topping's skill and dedication voted in droves to grant her this year's award for Best Nurse. This tremendous honor is well deserved. I extend my thanks and congratulations to Nurse Topping for her phenomenal service to the people of West Virginia. I encourage everyone, especially young nurses, to follow her extraordinary example. Teri Topping and her husband, Ret Topping, are the mother and father of three beautiful daughters. They also are grandparents. They have their first grandchild, fortunately, living nearby them in West Virginia. I consider them personal friends, and they are pillars of the community. Congratulations to Nurse Teri Topping for her Nurse of the Year award.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the life of Sergeant First Class Donald Keith Strickland, who recently passed away. Donald's favorite quote was: ``My proudest accomplishment was defending our great Nation.'' Sergeant First Class Donald Keith Strickland was born on May 31, 1934, to George and Ruth Strickland in Richmond, Indiana. The Stricklands moved out to California for a better life, as many did back in those days. Young Donald grew up in the San Fernando Valley and had many different jobs, from working at his family's grocery store to doing a paper route on his horse called Star Baby. While attending high school, Donald had a call to duty and joined the Navy on his 17th birthday. Donald's father had to sign papers in order to release him to enlist for the Korean war. While in Korea, he served on the famed aircraft carriers USS Yorktown and USS Hornet. After the Korean war and 3 years in the Navy, Donald decided to join the Army, where he spent the next 18 years of his life. Donald did his basic training at Fort Bragg. During Donald's first jump after training, his parachute did not open until he almost hit the ground. As he tells the story: ``I was the last one out of the plane and the first one down.'' During Donald's time in the Army, he was stationed in West Germany, where he met the love of his life, Antonie, and they have been married for over 60 years. Donald was sent off to the Vietnam war, where he served two tours of duty and was awarded the Bronze Star for bravery in action during the Tet Offensive. Donald rose to the rank of sergeant first class. After getting injured in the war, Donald became a drill sergeant at Fort Ord Army Base in Monterey, California. As his kids tell their friends, imagine having a drill sergeant for a dad. In reminiscing with his children, Donald was always proud to be called a soldier for America. Donald considered the United States of America the greatest country in the world. In 1973, Donald retired from the armed services and relocated to Simi Valley, California, where he worked for the police department. Donald loved working with his hands and could fix anything. Donald never had a negative comment about anyone, and any person who knew him loved him for his hard work and his smile. Donald's commitment was resounding, as he did not retire until the age of 75. Donald is survived by his wife, Antonie; his children, Gabriele, Rene, and Anthony; his grandchildren, Jacob, Samantha, Natasha, Alexandra, Ruby, and Anthony; and his great-grandchildren, Wyatt, Kayla, Sophia, and Bryce. Donald had been a resident of Ventura County since 1973 and resided in Camarillo since 2000 with his wife for the remainder of his life. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a tribute to Donald Strickland. SFC Donald Keith Strickland May 31, 1934-April 29, 2021 (age 86) tribute ``My proudest accomplishment was defending our great nation.''--Donald K. Strickland Sergeant First Class, Donald Keith Strickland was born May 31, 1934 to George and Ruth Strickland in Richmond, Indiana. The Strickland's moved out to California for a better life like many did back in those days. Young Donald grew up in the San Fernando Valley and had many different jobs from working at his family's grocery store, to doing a paper route down Sepulveda Blvd on his horse ``Star Baby.'' While attending San Fernando Valley High School, Donald had a call to duty and joined the Navy on his 17th Birthday. His father had to sign papers in order to release him to enlist for the Korean War. While in Korea, Donald served on the famed aircraft carriers USS Yorktown and USS Hornet. After the Korean War and three years in the Navy, Donald decided to join the Army of which he spent the next 18 years of his life. Donald did his basic training at Fort Brag, North Carolina and joined the legendary 82nd Airborne. During his first jump after training, Donald's parachute did not open until he almost hit ground. As he tells the story, ``I was the last one out of the plane and the first one down.'' Not discouraged, his commanding officer sent him right back up with no hesitation on Donald's part. He loved jumping out of airplanes. During his time in the Army, Donald was stationed in West Germany where he met the love of his life, Antonie, and have been married over 60 years. Donald was then sent off to the Vietnam War where he served two tours of duty and was awarded the Bronze Star for bravery in action during the Tet Offensive. Donald rose to the rank of Sergeant First Class as a non-commissioned officer and received many medals and awards. After getting injured in the war, Donald became a drill sergeant at Fort Ord Army Base in Monterey, California. As his kids tell their friends, imagine having a drill sergeant for a dad. In reminiscing with his children; he always was proud to be called a soldier. He considered the United States of America the greatest country in the world. In 1973, Donald retired from the armed services and relocated to Simi Valley, California. He briefly worked for the Simi Valley Police department and later went on to be facilities manager for a number of Convalescent and Hospital locations throughout Ventura County. He loved working with his hands and could fix anything. He never had a negative comment about anyone and any person who knew him loved him for his hard work and smile. His commitment was resounding as he did not retire until the age of 75, He is survived by his wife, Antonie; his children, Gabriele, Rene and Anthony; his grandchildren, Jacob, Samantha, Natasha, Alexandra, Ruby and Anthony; and his great grandchildren, Wyatt, Kayla, Sophia and Bryce. Donald has been a resident of Ventura County since 1973 and resided in Camarillo since 2000 with his wife for the remainder of his life. A Funeral Service was held on Sat, May 8, 2021 at 11:00 am at the Chapel of the Hills at Conejo Mountain Memorial Park: 2052 Howard Rd, Camarillo, California 93012, with interment to follow, also at Conejo Mountain. The Army Goes Rolling Along Verse: March along, sing our song, with the Army of the free Count the brave, count the true, who have fought to victory We're the Army and proud of our name We're the Army and proudly proclaim Chorus: First to fight for the right, And to build the Nation's might, And The Army Goes Rolling Along Proud of all we have done, Fighting till the battle's won, And the Army Goes Rolling Along. Refrain: Then it's Hi! Hi! Hey! The Army's on its way. Count off the cadence loud and strong For where e'er we go, You will always know That The Army Goes Rolling Along. Verse: Valley Forge, Custer's ranks, San Juan Hill and Patton's tanks, And the Army went rolling along Minutemen, from the start, Always fighting from the heart, And the Army keeps rolling along. (Refrain) Verse: Men in rags, men who froze, Still that Army met its foes, And the Army went rolling along. Faith in God, then we're right, And we'll fight with all our might, As the Army keeps rolling along.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, this past weekend, we celebrated Mother's Day, a day for families across our great Nation to honor our mothers. God has blessed me with a wife, the mother of our three beautiful children, including two daughters. My own mother, Lala, has instilled in me the values I am proud to cherish today, including my faith and belief in family. My mother, who is almost 80 years old, fled Communist Cuba under the Castro regime and is now a proud American. Her love of country inspires me each day. Mother's Day was founded by West Virginia native Anna Jarvis in 1908. But the radical left, including some Members of Congress, have begun referring to mothers as ``birthing people.'' NARAL, the pro-choice lobbying group, tweeted on May 6: ``When we talk about birthing people, we are being inclusive. It is that simple.'' The canceling of the term ``mother'' actually began here in the Congress when Speaker Pelosi changed the House Rules package and eliminated the words ``mother,'' ``father,'' ``son,'' and ``daughter,'' and replaced them with ``parent'' and ``child.'' It defies common sense that the cancel culture and some Members of Congress would seek to cancel the term ``mother.'' It is wrong that we cannot celebrate mothers on the House floor. All mothers play an important role.

Mr. MOONEY

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

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor a great West Virginia icon and U.S. Army veteran, Mr. Dennis Davis, who passed away on January 19, 2021. Dennis was the cabinet secretary for the West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance. He understood the needs of our veteran community. Dennis had also been a member of the West Virginia State University ROTC program. I enjoyed our time together as we met with veterans all across West Virginia's Second District. During his lifetime, Dennis was the much-admired director for West Virginia Workforce Development, an educator who helped guide citizens toward jobs, opportunities, and fulfillment in their lives. We commemorate his leadership, his service as an Army veteran, and his dedication to our great State. May his legacy forever live on to inspire hard work, devotion, and service.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, let's not attempt to steal knowledge of our Nation's history from our children, like the Grinch attempted to steal Christmas. I rise to honor the legendary Dr. Seuss for Read Across America Day. Yesterday would also have been his 117th birthday. Before he became a world-famous writer, Seuss attended Dartmouth College, my alma mater. He was also a member of the New Hampshire Alpha Chapter of the fraternity Sigma Phi Epsilon, of which I was also a member. We used to love showing Theodore Geisel's class photo on the wall to visitors. But in the spirit of cancel culture, publishers have discontinued six of his books. Dr. Seuss was known as a progressive for his time. His famous story ``The Lorax'' was about protecting the environment. My favorite, ``Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now!'' my 6-year- old daughter thinks was written just for her. Children grow up dreaming about ``Oh, the Places You'll Go!'' a Dr. Seuss book with the lessons we find throughout our life's journey. Madam Speaker, we should all respect and honor Dr. Seuss and forget this cancel culture nonsense.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 48.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. I would agree. And I would add that 27 percent of this bill, over $510 billion goes to State and local governments. So the taxpayers of my State of West Virginia and your State of Texas and other States are literally bailing out States that have failed to manage their own budgets. West Virginia taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for New York and Illinois and California that are completely out of control in their spending. $510 billion is going to bail out these State and local governments. It is not a good use of taxpayer dollars.

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, I will talk a little bit about some concerns and, generally, about the sanctity of human life and the unborn. I rise today in memory of the over 60 million babies who have been killed through abortion since the Supreme Court's disastrous decision Roe v. Wade. As a nation, we have taken extraordinary steps to protect public health and save lives amid the coronavirus outbreak, but there is a huge contradiction when it comes to protecting human life in the womb. Protecting all human life should be a bipartisan issue. Yet, today, President Biden is driving policies like taxpayer funding of abortion and naming pro-abortion extremist Xavier Becerra as the Health and Human Services Secretary. As recently as 2012, President Biden restated his long-held view that human life begins at conception. He said: ``With regard to abortion, I accept my church's position that life begins at conception.'' Well, it is not only a religious belief, but it is also a scientific fact that human life begins at conception. Thanks to modern scientific advancements, we now can visually see and know the personhood of preborn children. Doctors can operate on babies in the womb to save their lives. We know a preborn baby's heart starts to beat at about 6 weeks. Nails begin to form at 10 weeks, and babies have fingerprints by 13 weeks. It is time to give a voice to the voiceless. It is time for the law to acknowledge the dignity of the preborn babies who are the most helpless among us. I urge my fellow Members of Congress to join me in defense of all human life, standing up for all human life. I urge President Biden to actually enact his personally held views that he acknowledges that it begins at conception. I think we actually all know that. It is a scientific fact. The reconciliation bill that is coming up, there are pro-life concerns in this bill. For starters, it fails to include the traditional what we call the high protections. That is a longstanding policy in Congress that your taxpayer dollars do not go for abortions. This bill waives that. It enables taxpayer funding of abortion. There are more than $414 billion taxpayer dollars, supposedly intended for COVID-19 relief, that have no Hyde protections. So we are talking a lot about the cancel culture. You have, on the one hand, a division in this country. Many of us believe it is the taking of a human life, it is killing, it is murder; and we object to that. But instead of respecting our views, you actually want to take money from us through taxes and use our actual dollars to kill children. If you are going to talk about cancel culture, at least respect the differences of opinion. But this bill doesn't do that. This bill we are going to vote on this week doesn't do that. It gets rid of the high protections. It is taxpayer-funded abortions. It also requires taxpayers to subsidize health plans that potentially cover elective abortions. National Debt

Mr. MOONEY. Mr. Speaker, now I am going to change topics to something that is not talked about enough in this Congress, and that is spending. We talk a lot about these bills and how much we are going to spend on this group and spend on that group, and we are going to give money to this and give money to that.

Mr. MOONEY. Federal debt has increased sharply. I have this beautiful chart here starting in 1790, the first budget in our country right after the Revolutionary War, and you can see the national debt. This is done in a fair way. It is debt to the gross domestic product. So it is a percentage of the domestic product in debt. And you can see, in 1790, the mark where it was. We just finished the Civil War. So we owed some money to the soldiers. We paid that off in the next 40 years up until the Civil War. And in the Civil War there was a little bit of debt, and it goes back down again. And you can see it is kind of steadily up and down a bit. World War II, okay. World War II, again, debt-to-gross-domestic-product. We were just trying to survive there, and the debt is back down again. But when you get to where we are today, things have gone completely out of control. The Congressional Budget Office estimates an additional $104 trillion will be added by 2050. The Congressional Budget Office forecasted debt would rise 200 percent. Today, as I stand here right now, we have $27.9 trillion in national debt. $27.9 trillion, what is that to you? That is $84,000. That is actually a little more than $84,000 of debt to every American citizen right here today. Now, on this day 1 year ago, in 2020, the U.S. national debt was $23.4 trillion, that was $72,309 in debt per person. We have actually borrowed $10,000 per person in 1 year. I mean, that is out of control. And when you hear about these bills--I plan to vote against this one tomorrow; I think many of us do--they say, oh, we are going to give this and give that. No. They are taking it from you. This is debt that your children will have to pay. This $2 trillion--nearly $2 trillion spending package is full of liberal priorities. We are going to grow our debt to $29 trillion. That is even more debt owed per citizen. There is a lot of misinformation about where the debt is going. The top two countries we owe the debt to are China and Japan, not actually our friends. We are at global competition with China all the time. They are holding a lot of the debt. We owe China over $1 trillion and we owe Japan over $1 trillion. The people who are loaning us the money we have to pay back are not necessarily people who have our best interest at heart. Brazil, we owe $258 billion. India, we owe $216 billion. And the list goes on the debt that is owed to foreign countries. The national debt was $5.6 trillion in 2000. It increased. Under Obama, it actually doubled. Since the 8 years Obama was President, we doubled our national debt. And we are adding another--projected here--a completely out of control debt-to-GDP ratio. So I urge my colleagues to consider the future. Don't buy into the-- the government has no money it doesn't take from you that you are going to have to pay back. We need to be judicious with these dollars, and most of this is not going to coronavirus relief anyway.

Mr. MOONEY

Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, I object.

Mr. MOONEY of West Virginia

Mr. MOONEY of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, there are good parts of this bill, the things President Trump asked for at the very beginning, like tax relief for employers, help for those who lost their jobs, and funding for the medical community and first responders. I thank President Trump for his excellent leadership. I had a couple of ideas I would have liked to offer as amendments to this bill, but this is a closed process. 435 Members of Congress can't even offer amendments. That is not the way we are supposed to make legislation, especially when it spends $2 trillion. There are parts of this bill that are unrelated to the coronavirus: $1 billion for Amtrak, money for National Public Radio and the arts. But what we are not talking about is how we are going to pay for this. We all agree about spending $2 trillion, but how are we going to pay for it? Are we going to borrow from China? Are we going to borrow it from Russia? Are we going to just print the money and devalue our current currency? That is not being talked about. The interest on the national debt every year is already about half a trillion dollars, every year, going forward. We could use that money to pay for epidemics like this and fund our troops. So, going forward, we need to talk about balancing our budget and paying for things.