Nathaniel Moran

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this important bipartisan legislation to combat the illicit captagon trade, and I thank the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill) for introducing it. In recent years, captagon, a highly addictive amphetamine-type stimulant drug, has flooded the Middle East. Captagon makes its users aggressive and dangerous, increasing their capacity to commit crimes and acts of violence. In recent years, we have seen a sudden, drastic rise in captagon smuggling and usage throughout the Middle East. The brutal Iran-backed Assad regime in Syria is one of the main producers of captagon in the region. These war criminals are using narcotrafficking to evade global sanctions and fund their atrocities. Since 2011, hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians have died because of the Assad regime's unrelenting brutality. This is a regime that, with the support of Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah, tortures men, women, and children on an unthinkable scale. The Assad regime has repeatedly used chemical weapons against the Syrian people. In response to these crimes, the United States and many of our partners imposed overwhelming sanctions on the Assad regime, but the Assad regime found a workaround in the illicit drug trade. They are further destabilizing the Middle East by flooding our partner countries with drugs, and they are using the profits to stay afloat, despite our existing sanctions. That is why the legislation we are considering today is so important. It provides updated sanctions authorities to make sure we are cutting off all forms of financing used by the Assad regime and its criminal associates. This legislation would impose sanctions on anyone engaged in the production or proliferation of captagon, and it requires a report on whether Syrian and Hezbollah leaders should be sanctioned under this bill. We must act now to cut off the financial lifeline that the illicit production of captagon provides the Assad regime. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, Washington, DC, March 20, 2024. Hon. Michael McCaul, Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman McCaul: I write regarding H.R. 4681, the Illicit Captagon Trafficking Suppression Act of 2023. Provisions of this bill fall within the Judiciary Committee's Rule X jurisdiction, and I appreciate that you consulted with us on those provisions. The Judiciary Committee agrees that it shall be discharged from further consideration of the bill so that it may proceed expeditiously to the House floor. The Committee takes this action with the understanding that forgoing further consideration of this measure does not in any way alter the Committee's jurisdiction or waive any future jurisdictional claim over these provisions or their subject matter. We also reserve the right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of conferees in the event of a conference with the Senate involving this measure or similar legislation. I ask that you please include this letter in your committee's report to accompany this legislation or insert this letter in the Congressional Record during consideration of H.R. 4681 on the House floor. I appreciate the cooperative manner in which our committees have worked on this matter, and I look forward to working collaboratively in the future on matters of shared jurisdiction. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Sincerely, Jim Jordan, Chairman.

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

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill), vice chairman of the Financial Services Committee, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and the author of this bill.

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for closing. Mr. Speaker, the captagon threat is new to many of us, but the speed at which this drug trade has grown in the last few years is alarming. Creating new sanctions, specific to this drug trade, is necessary to stem this threat before it can grow even more dangerous. It is also essential to stopping the cash flow to the Assad regime. This bipartisan legislation is a key tool in our efforts to counter the Assad regime and its Russian and Iranian backers. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. MORAN

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

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6603) to apply foreign-direct product rules to Iran, as amended.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Foxx and Ranking Member Scott for introducing H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act. This bipartisan legislation will address the workforce needs of our industries by making necessary updates to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, also known as WIOA. This bill accomplishes much but let me highlight four important areas. First, this bill ensures that 50 percent of adult and dislocated worker funding goes toward upskilling workers. Second, this bill strengthens the current workforce education programs at community colleges so that educational programs are tied to the needs and demands of the communities, businesses, and the free market. Third, this bill heightens accountability for the use of these funds and is more outcome based while reducing the bureaucracy of typical government programs. Fourth, this bill includes my Building Youth Workforce Skills Act, which provides eligible in-school youth access to individual training accounts for a wide range of educational programs. This creates more opportunities for youth as they look to develop their skills in a way that is aligned with their passions and that is also relevant to business. It is critical that we provide workers access to workforce development and training programs that find the sweet spot between the needs of businesses and the skills of their workers. H.R. 6655 does just that, and it brings greater accountability and value to the taxpayers. Mr. Speaker, for these reasons and many more, I urge my colleagues to support this important piece of legislation.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and congratulate my friend, Henry Bell, on 35 years of service to the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce. This incredible milestone is a testament to his dedication, leadership, and unwavering commitment to the economic growth of the east Texas community. Throughout Henry's tenure, he has been a driving force behind the chamber of commerce's success. Henry's deep knowledge of the resources, traditions, and history of east Texas, combined with his natural ability to build strong relationships, have helped attract new businesses and create countless jobs in east Texas. Under his guidance, the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce has become a beacon of economic development, serving as a valuable resource and support system for businesses large and small. The Tyler Area Chamber is a regional top five chamber boasting more than 2,000 member businesses, organizations, and individuals. Beyond his professional contributions, Henry has sought to serve the Tyler community by dedicating his time and talents outside of work and in keeping with the traditions of five generations of Bells who have served before him. Once again, I congratulate Henry Bell on this remarkable milestone. The east Texas community is proud to have him, and we have been blessed because of him.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the reintroduction of H.R. 766, the Dr. Michael C. Burgess Preventive Health Savings Act, named in honor of my fellow Texan, friend, and champion for patients, Dr. Burgess. This bipartisan, bicameral, lifesaving legislation would direct the CBO to more accurately reflect the long-term cost-saving potential of preventive healthcare initiatives. Congress should recognize the impact that preventive healthcare can have on an individual's life, as well as the long-term cost-saving potential. Current restrictions prevent the CBO from fully examining the accurate economic impacts of preventive measures when they evaluate health legislation, but H.R. 766 goes beyond the normal 10-year window to allow Congress to better evaluate the potential for budgetary savings of preventive healthcare legislation and to ensure that it is done with the best interest of the American taxpayers in mind. If we are going to tackle the growing cost of medical care for individuals and find legislative solutions to mandatory healthcare parameters that account for at least one-third of the Federal budget, then we must seek transparency first. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 766.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Texas College in Tyler, Texas commemorating its 130th anniversary. Founded in 1894, Texas College was formed by ministers of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church to educate African-American students excluded from the university system of Texas at the time. Since its eventual charter in 1907, Texas College has aimed to form the next generation in theology, music, teaching and commercial training as well as agricultural and mechanical sciences. Today, Texas College inspires intellectual, spiritual, moral, and social development, empowering graduates to engage in life-long learning, leadership, and service. For generations, the college has formed upright, intelligent citizens who honor God through their knowledge, work, and families. I am proud to see the many accomplishments that Texas College has made since its inception. I am equally grateful to have Texas College as an integral part of the Tyler community and broader East Texas region. I look forward to another 130 years of success from the faculty and staff at Texas College as they celebrate their anniversary this month.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I was back in my district for Primary election night. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 60 and YEA on Roll Call No. 61.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 4039, the No Dollars to Uyghur Forced Labor Act, and I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this important measure. Slavery in any form is repugnant and morally wrong. America--the home of the brave and the land of the free--should not be complicit in the Chinese Communist Party's genocide, oppression, and enslavement of Uyghur Muslims. Currently, the China Communist Party is using over 100,000 Uyghur Muslims as slave labor. The No Dollars to Uyghur Forced Labor Act will ensure that the U.S. plays no part in this atrocity. Specifically, H.R. 4039 prohibits the State Department and USAID from developing or designing international contracts with companies that import or source any raw materials or goods that were manufactured, produced, or mined from the Xinjiang region of China. My legislation would also require a report to Congress identifying all violations in the previous year with a plan to improve enforcement and compliance. Xinjiang is an important region to China's economy. It represents one-sixth of China's land mass, and is home to most of their cotton, coal, and natural gas reserves. It is considered the core hub for China's Belt and Road Initiative, which is China's primary tool to exert economic influence across the globe. Many basic goods that we consider to be part of our everyday lives are being produced by forced labor in Xinjiang--raw materials like yarn, bricks, nails, cotton, hair products, gloves, and polysilicon, which is commonly used for solar panel manufacturing--all essential resources for global commerce. There is no excuse for the United States to continue in any partnership with companies that do business in Xinjiang and perpetuate these gross human rights abuses that the CCP has been committing against ethnic minorities for decades. In addition to those enslaved, between 1 and 2 million people have been detained arbitrarily by the CCP and placed in what they call reeducation centers where they have little to no freedom and undergo intense indoctrination at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party. Many who have endured these centers note that they were just paid 2 pennies or less to make a pair of gloves. Those who are enslaved are unable to leave, see their families, or communicate with their loved ones. The CCP's tactics of threats, intimidation, confinement, and physical and emotional abuse is intended to oppress its people, force assimilation, and in the process, grow its economic influence worldwide. Victims have no hope of life elsewhere. They know they will be monitored by police through oppressive surveillance systems. Survivors recount that the CCP cancel passports and lure minorities to China only then to detain them and use them for forced labor. The CCP reels in Uyghurs by offering free health services and then invades their lives and privacy by taking their DNA, fingerprints, and blood samples, which are then exported to malign actors. Unfortunately, this is just the beginning of their captivity and their oppression. If that is the society that the CCP is creating, we in the United States must act aggressively and immediately to make perfectly clear that we will not condone such brutality and such a cruel regime. What is more, the United States will not be a party to these atrocities. America must continue to act with strength on the foreign stage. We cannot allow totalitarian regimes to grow in strength and influence around the world. If we do, then what is happening to the Uyghurs in China will surely follow wherever China builds its empire. We simply cannot let this happen. We, in the United States, must stand for morality, we must stand for goodness, and we must stand for freedom. Madam Speaker, I call on my colleagues to do just that by passing H.R. 4039.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, the tax and regulatory burdens on our businesses are crippling, and it is incumbent upon us to change that. Last night, Congress took a step in the right direction to do something positive to help businesses in this struggling economy. We came together to pass the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act. This bill will spur American innovation and competitiveness, will reinvigorate manufacturing jobs at home, and will restore Trump-era, business-friendly tax policies that spur economic growth. My east Texas businesses have been asking for a progrowth, projob, and pro-American tax package designed to revitalize our economy and provide relief to American small businesses. Last night, we provided such a package. Restoring smart tax policy matters. This bill extends the 2017 Republican Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that has a proven track record of incentivizing U.S. investment, lifting families out of poverty, and allowing Americans to keep more of their paychecks. I stand with our small businesses, and I thank Chairman Smith for his diligent work on this thoughtful tax policy.

Mr. MORAN

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 969, I call up the resolution (H. Res. 957) denouncing the Biden administration's open-borders policies, condemning the national security and public safety crisis along the southwest border, and urging President Biden to end his administration's open-borders policies, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 957.

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I stand today in support of H. Res. 957, denouncing the Biden administration's open-borders policies, condemning the national security and public safety crisis along the southwestern border, and urging President Biden to end his administration's open- borders policies. Mr. Speaker, we have a problem at our southern border. I represent the First District of Texas, which is a rural district located in northeast Texas comprised of 17 counties. It borders Louisiana and Arkansas, and although it is not physically adjacent to the southern border, my district is directly impacted by the open-border policies of the Biden administration, as is every corner of America today. The text of my proposed House resolution is simple, straightforward, and to the point. It denounces the Biden administration's open-border policies, condemns the national security and public safety crisis caused by these policies, and urges President Biden to end them immediately. Mr. Speaker, why do we need to actually have this resolution in the House today? I will tell you, Mr. Speaker. It is for two primary reasons. One is because we need to admit that there is a problem. This House needs to admit that there is a problem on the border. Number two, we need to identify the source of the problem itself. Why do we have open borders? It is because of the policies of this administration. Those two things today, to admit and to identify, will help lead us to a solution from this House body and across the three branches of government. The border numbers do not lie. In fact, they tell a clear story about the depth of the crisis and the proximate cause rooted in the Biden administration policies. Consider that the total number of illegal aliens encountered along the southern border since President Biden took office exceeds 7 million. At the same time, the Biden administration has released at least 3.3 million of those illegal aliens into the interior of the United States. This number is larger than the entire population of States like Nevada, Arkansas, and Kansas. In fact, it exceeds the combined populations of Wyoming, Vermont, Alaska, and North Dakota together. Additionally, more than 1.7 million got-aways and an untold number of unknown illegal got-aways have successfully evaded capture by the U.S. Border Patrol along the southwestern border. Mr. Speaker, 312 illegal aliens on the Terrorist Screening Dataset were encountered along the southwestern border since President Biden took office. By contrast, consider that during the 4 years of the prior administration, only 11 illegal aliens on that same list were encountered by Border Patrol. If we look just at the last quarter, we see how depraved the situation is on the southwestern border. More than 785,000 migrant encounters have been reported just since the beginning of this fiscal year, and last month's record high, the first time ever in American history, was 300,000-plus encounters along the southwestern border. In fiscal year 2023, 27,000 pounds of fentanyl were seized at the southern border. This is almost double what fiscal year 2022 brought at 14,700 pounds, and it is six times higher than in fiscal year 2020. We have seen more than 150,000 unaccompanied minors cross over the U.S.-Mexico border, and reports indicate that we have lost contact with over 85,000 of those unaccompanied children. It used to be that most of the migrants who were coming up to our southern border were from Mexico, but now the landscape has changed. In fiscal year 2022, migrants from Mexico crossing illegally made up just 33 percent. Now, individuals are coming from across the world, more than 150 countries, and many of those countries have direct ties with terrorism. When I was down at Eagle Pass on the border several months ago, we were told that there were at least 27 countries with ties to terrorism that had immigrants come across that southern border who were encountered in the last couple of years. How astounding and how problematic for this country. Despite the authority that the President has to fix these issues, he simply will not do it. What policies are we talking about? The current administration has ended the Migrant Protection Protocols and the remain in Mexico policy. We are told by border security people that if we reinstate just remain in Mexico, that could end up to 70 percent of the encounters that we see coming across the border. The administration also has reinstated catch-and-release policies. They have suspended asylum cooperative agreements with other nations, such as El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. They have ignored existing restraints on the abuse of parole. They have halted necessary border wall construction. They have undermined the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's core mission by preventing them from deporting certain aliens who violate U.S. law. They have enabled use of smartphone apps to facilitate the release of border crossers into the United States. Moreover, they have redirected Customs and Border Patrol agents to do ICE paperwork processing instead of focusing on law enforcement work. In short, the current administration's policies have led to the numbers that we are seeing today, numbers like 2.5 million just in the last fiscal year, 2.3 million in the year before, and 1.74 million in the year before compared to numbers like 400,000 or 500,000 per year under the prior administration. One is too many, but 2.5 million is egregious. It has led to situations like overcrowded classrooms and children trafficked to do work in industries unsuited for children--unsuited for anybody; millions of dollars in unpaid medical bills in hospitals across the U.S., which overwhelm first responders in border communities; homeless veterans who are getting kicked out of shelters in favor of illegal aliens; and even the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans by fentanyl. Because of the increased fentanyl crisis, these effects are being felt in rural and metropolitan communities in both blue and red States. As of the beginning of December, the city of Denver had spent over $33 million to house, feed, and educate around 30,000 illegal aliens. Chicago residents are up in arms, as well, as are New York City residents. Their mayor says that this crisis will destroy the city. In 2022, here is the number I was citing for you just a second ago-- 73,654 people died from fentanyl overdose in the U.S. This is more than double the amount of deaths in 2019 and the highest in American history. Assaults on Border Patrol agents doubled just last year. Nevertheless, the Biden administration is doubling down on these open- border policies. What will it take for them to wake up? What will it take for us to find a solution for the border crisis? There is a lot to be done. There are lots that can be done by this body and the Senate and across this government, but it starts with leadership in the White House, policy leadership in the White House to undo the current open-border policies and to return to the policies that were preventing this crisis before. Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 957 denounces these open-border policies, condemns the national security and public crisis that we are seeing today because of that, and urges the President to end those policies immediately. The people of America deserve better. They deserve to have the sovereignty and the geographic borders of this Nation protected. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Biggs).

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Van Duyne).

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Van Drew).

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Kiley).

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Williams).

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cloud).

Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Wyoming (Ms. Hageman).