Mike Rogers

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, in response to my friend and colleague from Mississippi, who, in his last statements, emphasized that the employees at TSA would have the right to elect their union representation, I would refer him to page 9, line 24 of his bill, ``Exclusive Representative--The labor organization certified by the Federal Labor Relations Authority on June 29, 2011, or successor labor organization shall be treated as the exclusive representative of full- and part-time nonsupervisory TSA personnel carrying out screening functions under section 44901`` et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. This bill does pick winners and losers and, in this case, AFGE is the winner. I am just saying, I don't think that is right. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chair, I appreciate my friend and colleague from California's observation, but, again, I emphasize about the union representation. The gentleman just made the statement and reiterated what the chairman had said in his opening statement, and that is there has been enormous turnover in the TSA over the last decade because of the poor pay, benefits, and working circumstances. The fact is that very few people who work at TSA today voted for AFGE to be the union. It won by plurality--not a majority--10 years ago, and very few people who were there then are here now. So, if, in fact, this bill were ever to become law--which it is not-- at a minimum, we should allow the workers to decide who they want their representation to be. AFGE may win it, but it is wrong for Congress to dictate to 45,000 employees who they should have for representation. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chair, I would point out to my colleague from Oregon that the $1.8 billion was over 5 years, not 10 years. The screening fee that the gentleman was referring to was diverted under the Obama administration to general deficit relief. But the fact is I agree fully with Chairman Thompson that we should be paying our screeners more. It is our fault. Congress has not funded the ability of TSA to raise their pay. The irony of this bill is it would make it harder to pay them more; it would pay them less. If we would fund the TSA for what they are requesting, current law would allow them to have better incomes and better benefits than this bill would allow. That is the real irony here. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Lee- Scott Academy girls basketball team for winning the Alabama Independent School Association (AISA) Class AAA basketball championship. The Warriors defeated Glenwood 44 to 26 in the championship game on February 15th at the Crampton Bowl in Montgomery. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Lee-Scott Academy, the coaches, the players and all the Warrior fans on this exciting achievement. Go Warriors.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Spring Garden girls basketball team for winning the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 1A basketball championship. The Panthers defeated St. Luke's 53 to 45 in the championship game on February 27th. Spring Garden has won three titles over the last five years. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Spring Garden High School, the coaches, the players and all the Panther fans on this exciting achievement. Go Panthers.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Anniston girls basketball team for winning the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 4A basketball championship. The Bulldogs defeated Deschler 61 to 51 in the championship game on February 28th at Legacy Arena. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Anniston High School, the coaches, the players and all the Bulldogs fans on this exciting achievement. Go Bulldogs.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I ask for the House's attention to recognize Mr. Ruble Ray Gardner who will be turning 99 on March 1, 2020. Mr. Gardner was born on March 1, 1921, and served his country in the Army and Air Force. During his service, he was stationed in Africa, Great Britain, the Middle East, Germany, Paris, Alaska, Italy, the North Pole, Arctic Circle and other locations. His wife, Ruth ``Boots'' Gardner, joined him in Great Britain. During his military career, he received numerous medals including two Silver Stars, one Bronze Star and a Good Conduct award. Following his service in the military, Mr. Gardner was employed by the United States Postal Service. He was a resident of Childersburg, Alabama and a member of the CornerStone Church of Christ. He currently lives at the Bill Nichols State Veterans Home in Alexander City. Madam Speaker, please join me in recognizing Ruble Ray Gardner and wishing him a very happy 99th birthday.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Talladega County Deputy Chris Rogers and three other brave individuals, Michael Oakes, Ronnie Ragland and Paul Wright, who helped save Sylacauga Police Officer Blake McGhee's life. On November 14, 2019, McGhee had an automobile accident with a log truck and was pinned in his duty SUV which had caught on fire. Chris Rogers and three passersby--all strangers to McGhee--worked bravely to remove McGhee despite ammunition discharging in the back of the vehicle due to the flames. McGhee suffered internal injuries and broken bones. Because of the work of these four individuals, McGhee's life was saved. Madam Speaker, please join me in recognizing Chris Rogers, Michael Oakes, Ronnie Ragland and Paul Wright for their selfless and brave acts to save the life of Blake McGhee.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I thank the ranking member. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this brazen political stunt. Qasem Soleimani was a vicious terrorist who built a cult following on the backs of dead Americans. He armed Hezbollah, KH, and other Iranian proxies who killed American troops and our allies throughout the Middle East. The Homeland Security and Defense Departments have kept close watch on his terror campaigns for years. Soleimani was not visiting Baghdad because it was a great holiday destination. He was there to meet the leader of a terrorist group that killed an American just days before. Our President used the law and his constitutional authority as Commander in Chief to eliminate this terrorist mastermind before he could kill again. Democrats immediately responded by doubting our intelligence and dismissing the expertise of our military leaders. Now they bring this resolution to the floor that maligns our President, undermines our national security, and makes a martyr of a man who killed nearly 600 Americans. Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Lanett High School football team for winning the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 1A football championship. The Panthers defeated Mars Hill Bible 41-30 in the championship game on December 5th played at Jordan-Hare Stadium at Auburn University. The Panthers brought home the program's second state title in three years. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Lanett High School, the coaches, the players and all the Panther fans on this exciting achievement. Go Panthers.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Betty Carr. Betty has been an iconic fixture in Anniston for decades and an inspiration and advocate for local youth. Betty grew up in Anniston in a family that placed an importance on their community and grew up in church at First United Methodist Church. Betty now attends Grace Episcopal Church. She worked at the University of Alabama, ran Camp Grandview in Montgomery and was a Soda Jerk at the end of World War II. Betty is best known for her work with many generations of area youth. She worked as the youth and program director at the YMCA from 1967 to 1985. This month, the Anniston City Council unanimously supported that the section of West 14th Street in front of the YMCA will be named ``Betty Carr Way.'' After the YMCA, Betty also worked at the Chamber of Commerce. Even today, Betty is still going strong spending her days greeting people at Classic on Noble. She has suffered from macular degeneration, but has not let losing her eyesight slow her down. Betty will turn 95 on January 21. Madam Speaker, please join me in recognizing Betty and her service to our youth. Please also join me in wishing her a very happy 95th birthday this month.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Piedmont High School football team for winning the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 3A football championship. The Bulldogs defeated Mobile Christian 26-24 in the championship game on December 5th played at Jordan-Hare Stadium at Auburn University. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Piedmont High School, Coach Smith along with all the coaches, the players and all the Bulldog fans on this exciting achievement. Go Bulldogs.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Central-Clay High School football team for winning the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 5A football championship. The Volunteers defeated Pleasant Grove 31-27 in the championship game on December 5th played at Jordan-Hare Stadium at Auburn University. This is their second straight title. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Central-Clay High School, the coaches, the players and all the Volunteer fans on this exciting achievement. Go Vols.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Oxford High School football team for winning the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 6A football championship. The Yellow Jackets defeated Spanish Fort 14-13 in the championship game on December 6th played at Jordan-Hare Stadium at Auburn University. After an exciting game, the Yellow Jackets secured their victory in the final minute of the 4th quarter. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the students and faculty of Oxford High School, the coaches, the players and all the Yellow Jacket fans on this exciting achievement. Go Yellow Jackets.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in complete and total support of President Trump. The matter before the House today is based solely on a fundamental hatred of our President. It is a sham, a witch hunt, and it is tantamount to a coup against the duly-elected President of the United States. This is a sad day for our Nation when one political party, along with their cohorts in the deep state and the mainstream media, try to hijack our Constitution. The Democrat majority has irresponsibly turned the impeachment process into a political weapon, something that Republicans refused to do when our base was calling for the impeachment of President Obama. It is well past time for the House to move beyond this hoax and put our Nation first. That is exactly what President Trump is doing. The United States has record-low unemployment and historic performance in the stock market. President Trump is rewriting failed trade deals of the past to put America first. He is rebuilding our military, helped create Space Force, and the list goes on. I implore my colleagues to end this spectacle now.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Thornberry and Chairman Smith for their leadership in bringing this conference report to the floor. I am very pleased that Space Force, an issue that my good friend, Jim Cooper, and I have been working on for several years, is finally becoming a reality. This report establishes the U.S. Space Force in title 10 as the sixth Armed Service of the United States under the Department of the Air Force. It is the first new branch of the military since 1947. It also recognizes space as a warfighting domain and authorizes the transfer of Air Force personnel to the newly established Space Force. This is an important step for our national security. Our adversaries are moving quickly in space, and this new service will allow us to quickly realign our resources and efforts towards countering them. Finally, the original House-passed NDAA that every Republican opposed, included a number of open border provisions that would have undermined our efforts to secure our Southwest border. I am pleased that those unreasonable border security restrictions have been removed. Madam Speaker, this is a strong defense bill, and I urge the House to support this legislation.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I ask for the House's attention to recognize the retirement of Mike Rollins after 40 years of service with Coosa Valley Youth Services. Coosa Valley Youth Services works with the juvenile court systems of Calhoun County. Rollins has been involved at the facility in some form or another since it opened its doors in 1974. Rollins even spent time as a detainee when he was in his teens and several years after that, he applied to work at the center part-time in maintenance. Over the years, he worked his way up to guard, manager and all the way to the top as Executive Director. The center has grown and now has 70 employees and 90 plus program participants and detainees. Rollins has a heart for the children and has helped so many of them get back on the right path. Madam Speaker, please join me in recognizing Mike and congratulating him on his retirement after a wonderful career.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, I ask for the House's attention to recognize the Tiffany Johnson Cole. Tiffany is an attorney with the Law Offices of Robert Simms Thompson, PC in Tuskegee, Alabama. She handles cases in the areas of automobile products liability, negligence, wrongful death, trucking litigation, fraud and breach of contract. Tiffany made history when she became the first female to be appointed as Municipal Court Judge in the City of Tuskegee. Tiffany received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Spelman College and her Juris Doctorate from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University. She is licensed to practice law in Alabama and Georgia. Tiffany is a member of the North Florida Child Development Center Board and the Alabama A&M Board of Trustees. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc where she serves as the Alabama Social Action Coordinator. Tiffany is a member of the Alabama State Bar Association, Alabama Association for Justice, Macon County Bar Association, the Links Incorporated and Jack and Jill of America. Tiffany was recognized as one ofthe most influential persons in Macon County and most recently named as one of the Women of Shape the State of Alabama. Tiffany is married to Jermaine and together they share five children. Madam Speaker, please join me in recognizing Tiffany and congratulating her on appointment as the first female Municipal Court Judge in the City of Tuskegee.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Madam Speaker, today I ask for the House's attention to recognize the 50th anniversary of the Talladega 500 Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. In the mid-1960s, NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr., envisioned a bigger and faster track on the NASCAR circuit. After meeting with local race car driver and fan Bill Ward of Anniston, Alabama, the location was selected for the track, and the groundbreaking ceremony for the Alabama International Motor Speedway--today known as the Talladega Superspeedway--took place on May 23, 1968. The first race, the Talladega 500, was held on September 14, 1969, with Richard Brickhouse winning that race. I had the good fortune to be in attendance that day with my dad. The race played a major role in NASCAR's history, as many of the top stars of the sport walked out the day before the race due to concerns over tire wear on the 200-mile-per- hour track. Mr. France said the race would go on and recruited drivers from the smaller NASCAR Touring Series, the Bama 400, the day before to replace them. The Talladega Superspeedway is the most competitive racetrack on the NASCAR schedule, the highest banked, and the longest, as well as the most fan friendly. Madam Speaker, please join me in recognizing the anniversary of the Talladega Superspeedway.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. In the last year, nearly 1 million illegal immigrants attempted to cross our southwest border. Let me put that into perspective for you. One million is more than the population of Delaware, or South Dakota or North Dakota or Alaska or Vermont or Wyoming. One million is approximately the population of Austin, Texas; San Jose, California; or Jacksonville, Florida. For months, migrant families and children arrived at the border in droves thanks to sophisticated smuggling operations. Coyotes told vulnerable populations that a child was their ticket into the United States--whether or not it was their child. The massive groups of migrants overwhelmed our border patrol facilities, leading to overcrowding and unacceptable conditions for migrants and law enforcement alike. At the high-water mark of this crisis, more than 50 percent of the border patrol agents were pulled off the front lines to process, transport, and care for the record numbers of migrant children and families. The men and women of CBP have worked hard to manage this crisis while Democrats in this House were busy talking about a fake emergency at our border. The administration has taken extraordinary steps like the migrant protection protocols, DNA testing to catch child smugglers, and interpreted new rules to reduce abuse of our asylum laws. While the President is doing everything in his power to manage the crisis, House Democrats have done nothing. They steadfastly refuse to do anything to fix our broken immigration system, to protect vulnerable families and children from human smugglers, to reduce the asylum backlog, or expand migrant processing and long-term housing. Now they want to take away the President's authority to respond to this crisis and prevent another one from happening. It is disgraceful. Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on this resolution.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I note several Members across the aisle have talked about the need to improve our health screenings. This bill does nothing to deal with that. It is about requiring the installation of electronic medical records. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, here we have another bill that demonstrates just how disingenuous Democrats are about securing our borders and fixing our broken immigration system. But in a new twist, today's bill shockingly prioritizes illegal immigrants over servicemembers and veterans. They are going to send another partisan messaging bill to the Senate, where it will promptly die. When Democrats are ready to legislate real solutions to the problem that this country faces, Republicans stand ready to work with them. In the meantime, I urge all Members to oppose this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I am curious about the announcement that the administration is in support of this and is working toward this, because they have already issued an announcement that they oppose this piece of legislation. So, if it did pass, it would be vetoed by the President. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce), an outstanding member of the Committee on Homeland Security.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. David P. Roe), the ranking member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, and a physician.

Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, here we go again. Yesterday, the majority passed a partisan messaging bill to provide illegal immigrants with an additional complaint line at the Department of Homeland Security. It has no chance of becoming law. Today, they are back at it with another partisan messaging bill that will never become law. This time, it is a bill to provide illegal immigrants with electronic health records. This bill before us today requires the Department of Homeland Security to set up an interoperable electronic health records system to track the medical history of millions of illegal immigrants. The bill requires the system to be up and running in 90 days. Implementing an electronic health records system is a complicated, labor-intensive undertaking. They begin with a configuration process to tailor the commercial software to a client's needs and then proceed to a site-by-site installation process, followed by workforce training. It typically takes a year or more to get new electronic health records up and running at a hospital with just one location. Making these systems interoperable across government agencies only creates more complexity, extending implementation by years. If you need a real-world example of just how unachievable this is, look no further than the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard spent 7 years trying to get an interoperable health records system in place for its 50,000 employees. But, after all that time, the system didn't work. Coast Guard servicemembers are still forced to rely on paper medical records. The Coast Guard is not alone. The Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration won't have fully interoperable health records systems in place for another 5 to 9 years, respectively. H.R. 3525 also requires DHS to research innovative ways to conduct medical screenings on illegal immigrants. DHS already conducts thousands of medical screenings on migrants on a daily basis. Finding new ways to deliver health screenings more effectively could save time and money, but researching innovations in healthcare delivery is not the mission of DHS. The research mandated by this bill is the responsibility of the Department of Health and Human Services. DHS research is properly focused on preventing drugs, criminals, and terrorists from entering our borders. We should not force DHS to lose its focus on these critical Homeland Security priorities. Finally, the bill before us today fails to provide DHS with any funding to achieve the illegal immigrant medical screening research and interoperable health records mandates. We have no idea how much this bill will cost because the majority failed to file a cost estimate from CBO. However, we do know from the experience of the VA, DOD, and Coast Guard that interoperable electronic health records systems are extremely expensive undertakings. The DOD and VA are on track to spend over $25 billion on their systems. The Coast Guard's failed system to track just 50,000 people cost $67 million. Using the Coast Guard as a baseline, it would cost over $2.5 billion to track the medical history of just the illegal immigrants that have come into our country over the last 2 years. In other words, without any funding provided for the mandates in this bill, billions in critical DHS funding used to counter terrorist plots, equip first responders, and respond to natural disasters would be diverted to pay for a benefit for millions of illegal migrants. Mr. Speaker, what is truly disappointing about this bill that we have considered over the last 2 days is that they did nothing to prevent another humanitarian crisis at our border. We should be working together on legislation that reforms our broken immigration system, protects vulnerable families and children from human smugglers, reduces the asylum backlog, and expands migrant processing and long-term housing. When this partisan messaging bill fails to move in the Senate, I hope Democrats will finally choose policy over politics and agree to work with Republicans on solutions to our border security problems. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.