Guy Reschenthaler

Mr. RESCHENTHALER

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

Mr. RESCHENTHALER

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman and my good friend from California for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the rule before us provides for consideration of four pieces of legislation that are, once again, nothing but missed opportunities to address the multiple crises facing our country under the Biden Presidency. Rather than working with Republicans to actually address the unmitigated crisis at our southern border, to address the cold war we have with China, the proxy war we have with Russia, or the historic levels of inflation, Democrats are rushing to the floor these half- baked legislative items that will create more problems than they aim to solve. Look no further than S. 3905, the Preventing Organizational Conflicts of Interest in Federal Acquisition Act. Instead of making meaningful reforms to Federal acquisition policy, this legislation is duplicative, and it is contradictory to existing policies. It also tells the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to do something that it is already required to do. Additionally, this rule provides for consideration of H.R. 1948, the VA Employee Fairness Act. This legislation would put veteran patients at risk by shifting questions of professional conduct to collective bargaining. The Secretary of the VA has been and should continue to be directly accountable for the quality of care provided to our veterans at the VA. While we are focusing on these unnecessary bills, China has recently signed a $50 billion trade deal with our ally Saudi Arabia; Putin, once again, threatened to launch a nuclear war on the West; and the wealth of the average American has dropped to the lowest level ever recorded. The chief of the U.S. Border Patrol reported that over the weekend there were over 16,000 migrant encounters at the border--and wait for it--that was in a 48-hour period, 16,000 in less than 2 days, but President Biden hasn't stepped foot on the southern border since he took office. Last week, when he was not visiting the border while in Arizona, President Joe Biden was asked about that, and his response was ``There are more important things going on.'' Yet, during the administration there have been nearly 5 million illegal immigrant crossings at our southern border, and that includes 1 million got-aways. These are individuals that we have no record of that we just know escaped into the interior of the country. Yet, Biden has failed at protecting our southern border just as he failed in America's prisoner swap with President Putin. The administration effectively surrendered to Putin by swapping a woke celebrity basketball player for the ``Merchant of Death,'' an international arms smuggler with the blood of Americans on his hands. This disastrous negotiation is just another failed foreign policy decision that was based on Russia's terms, not ours. This rash decision left two other Americans detained in Russia: Pittsburgh history teacher Marc Fogel, and U.S. Marine Paul Whelan. They have no clear chance of returning home now. We have lost all leverage unless--I am going to be surprised to discover that--we have two ``merchants of death'' in a Federal prison in the U.S. Something tells me that is not the case. What we should be doing is we should be immediately acting to protect our national security. We should be ensuring the safe return of all Americans that are wrongfully detained abroad. We should be working to secure the southern border. We should not be passing ill-conceived and unnecessary legislation. To be frank, our time is too precious, and our challenges are too great. Mr. Speaker, for those reasons, I urge my colleagues to oppose this rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, instead of addressing any of the crises that are actually facing this Nation, House Democrats are allowing the Senate to ram through a huge omnibus spending bill that was written without the input of House Republicans and was written behind closed doors. In September, House Republicans were very clear in opposition to postponing a government funding fight to the Democrat-controlled lame- duck session. Once again, House Democrats failed to meet the fundamental duty of funding the government despite spending most of the year passing trillions of dollars in wasteful spending that has fueled inflation and driven up our debt. That is why if we defeat the previous question, I will personally offer an amendment to the rule to immediately strike sections 8 and 9 from the rule, which would strike the omnibus vehicle from this rule. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the Record, along with any extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy), to explain the amendment.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for closing. Lives are being lost while President Biden and Congressional Democrats continue to ignore the crisis at our southern border. Tragically, just last week, on December 7, United States Border Patrol Agent Raul Humberto Gonzalez, Jr., was killed while chasing a group of migrants across the border. To go back to that quote from President Biden about the southern border and about why he hasn't visited, despite the fact that he was just in Arizona, ``There are more important things going on.'' That is what President Biden has to say; stinging words given the deaths and casualties that we are seeing at the southern border and the fentanyl deaths and overdoses in the interior of this country. It is absolutely maddening to see such a flagrant disregard not only for our hardworking Border Patrol agents but our Nation's immigration system as a whole. For that reason, we must bring the border crisis to an end. But President Joe Biden and Congressional Democrats have manufactured this historic crisis on our southern border by halting the construction of the border wall, ending Trump's remain in Mexico policy, and refusing to visit the border. U.S. Border Patrol facilities are becoming overrun with thousands of illegal immigrants in custody. This crisis is only getting worse. On December 21, title 42 ends, a powerful tool that allowed border officials to expel more than 2 million migrants during the pandemic. There now have been 20 straight months of over 150,000 illegal border crossings. Yet, with today's rule, House Democrats continue to ignore this historic disaster at our border. This crisis could not be more devastating to the sovereignty and the security of our Nation. Mr. Speaker, for those reasons, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I really can't stand the cliche that history repeats itself, but that is true. To prove that, let me just read some excerpts from a Joe Biden speech from 2006. Joe Biden said: ``The world is going to Hades in a handbasket. We are desperately concerned about the circumstance relating to the avian flu. We do not have enough vaccines. We do not have enough police officers. And we are going to debate, the next 3 weeks, I am told, gay marriage, a flag amendment, and God only knows what else. I can't believe the American people can't see through this. We already have a law, the Defense of Marriage Act. We all voted.'' That was Joe Biden in 2006. It sounds awfully familiar to what my colleagues across the aisle are doing now with these fluff bills, bills that are already on the books and nothing but a distraction from the real crises that are facing this Nation. To talk more about that, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy), my good friend.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Once again, this rule provides for four pieces of legislation that, once again, are just missed opportunities to actually address the problems we are facing. Let's talk about one of the biggest problems, and that is the southern border. To contextualize this, let me give you some stats. This year, 98 suspected terrorists have been apprehended attempting to cross the southern border. Think about that. It took 19 hijackers on 9/11 to pull off the largest terrorist attack in this country. In this year alone, we have let 98 suspected terrorists walk across the southern border. In October, there were over 230,000 illegal immigrant encounters at the southern border. That is just in October. To put that into context, that is a 334 percent increase from the average number of October encounters under President Trump. In November, there were more than 70,000 known got-aways at the southern border. That is a historic record. What is really worse is the fentanyl crisis, the fentanyl that is coming across the southern border. There were more than 14,000 pounds of illicit fentanyl seized in fiscal year 2022. That is a record. As a reminder, a lethal dose of fentanyl is only 2 milligrams. Fentanyl was responsible for two-thirds of all drug overdoses last year. There has been a 94 percent increase in fentanyl deaths since 2019. To put that into more context, that is one fentanyl overdose every 7 minutes in the United States. Just 5 to 10 percent of the drugs coming across the southern border are seized by our Border Patrol agents. What does the administration say on this? It is classic gaslighting. I will quote Joe Biden once again. He said, ``There are more important things going on.'' Kamala Harris, the so-called border czar, said the border is secure. DHS Secretary Mayorkas said, look, the border is secure. They are either gaslighting, or they have no connection and no grounding in reality. As far as the omnibus, let's just go back to September. In September, House Democrats were clear in their opposition to postponing a government funding fight to the Democrat-controlled lame-duck session. We didn't want it then; we don't want it now. Unfortunately, on September 30, a continuing resolution was passed funding the government through December 16. So, here we are today. This 1-week continuing resolution is an attempt to buy additional time for a massive lame-duck spending bill in which House Republicans had no seat at the negotiating table. We will soon be in the majority. Republicans will soon be in the majority. We will be in the driver's seat to fight for our priorities. That is why every Republican should be a ``no'' on the Democrats' lame- duck omnibus spending bill. To talk more about the omnibus, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).

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

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

Mr. RESCHENTHALER

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Cole for yielding me the time. Under the Biden-Harris administration, we are seeing crises, manufactured crises. Let's just look at a few in turn. We have a manufactured economic crisis. The inflation rate has increased by 550 percent since January of 2021. Total government spending during that time has increased over $9 trillion. This is out- of-control spending that is leading to this inflation. It is costing the average American family $6,000 a year. Let me just put that in perspective. That would be like going up to a family and saying, can you give me 1 month's paycheck? Most cannot do that. The inflation has deprived the average American family of 1 month's pay, and this CR does absolutely nothing to address inflation. It does nothing to bring the economic crisis to an end. It just doesn't stop there. Let's talk about the manufactured energy crisis. The day, literally, day 1 that Biden took office, he declared war on American energy. He shut down the Keystone Pipeline and, as a result, American families are paying higher and higher prices at the pump. We are going to face record-level energy costs going into this winter, and yet, this CR does absolutely nothing to address the energy crisis. Let's talk about crime. There is a crime wave going on all over country. Cities across the Nation are witnessing the results of the defund the police movement. Homicide rates across this country have increased roughly 50 percent, compared to this time in 2019. In my home State of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia has recorded over 400 murders so far this year. Philadelphia is on track to see the highest homicide rate in recorded history, and it is because of the defund the police movement. It is because of Democrat rule. It is not just Philly. Los Angeles, in 2021, L.A. defunded the police by $150 million. What did they get? Homicide rates went up 23 percent, yet this CR does nothing to combat the crime wave that we are seeing. It does nothing to re-fund the police. Let's talk about fentanyl. In my district, and across the country, communities are facing the opioid epidemic, and that is a direct result of fentanyl flooding across our porous southern border. The devastation is because of Biden's failed policies, the open border policies that he has instituted. And just don't take my word for it. The DEA Commissioner said that the open border policies are killing Americans ``at rates never seen before.'' Yet, this CR does nothing to address the fentanyl issue. It does nothing. It is because the base of the Democratic Party, the woke yuppies who stay at home and are on Zoom classes all day view this issue as a Cracker Barrel problem, something that will never affect them because they don't shop at Walmart. They drive a hybrid, not a Chevy Silverado; so that is why we are not seeing urgency on the fentanyl crisis. Let me just put it in perspective. Fentanyl overdose leads to about 300 deaths every single day in this country. That is the equivalent of an airliner going down every single day. If an airliner went down just once a week in this country, it would be declared an emergency within 2 to 3 weeks. Yet, we are seeing the same death every single day, and because it is viewed as a fly-over problem, an issue that is facing people that don't live on the coast, no one cares about it, and this CR does nothing to address it. It is just not fentanyl. Let's talk about the crisis of immigration. Since Biden took office, over 3.5 million illegal immigrants have been apprehended at the southern border. This CR does nothing to add additional border security; nothing for additional infrastructure; nothing for advanced technology. For those reasons, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule and ``no'' on the continuing resolution.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman and my good friend from Maryland for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, the rule before us today provides for consideration of H.R. 8873, which--let's just call it what it is--this is a partisan messaging bill from my friends across the aisle. My colleagues want to ram this bill through Congress to change the way Presidential elections are conducted. H.R. 8873 is attempting to reform the Electoral Count Act for the first time since 1887. This is the first time in 135 years we are taking a look at this. Yet, despite that, no hearings were held on this bill, and the text was introduced just a mere 24 hours before it was presented in the Rules Committee yesterday. During testimony before the Rules Committee, the sponsor of the bill, Chair Lofgren, mentioned repeatedly the lengthy process they undertook to draft this bill, including consulting the country's leading so- called experts. Yet, she did not bother to bring this legislation before her own committee for consideration. Given the majority's constant claims of democracy itself being under attack, one would think that the Democratic Party and my colleagues across the aisle would bring bills through the appropriate channels and mechanisms. But my colleagues across the aisle will also try to tell you that this bill is a reform, it is a reaction to the objections to certifying the 2020 election. However, both sides of the aisle have long used their legal authority to object to Presidential elections. Notable individuals that have exercised this authority include no other than Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Nancy Pelosi--and that is just to name a few. Again, they have all used this authority to object to Presidential elections. Even our distinguished chairman of the Committee on Rules, and someone I consider a good friend, objected to the 2016 elections. My other Rules Committee colleague and good friend from Maryland also objected. In fact, following the 2016 election, Democrats objected to certifying the electoral votes of more States than Republicans did in 2021. Following her loss to President Trump, Hillary Clinton continued to attack the integrity of our democratic process by insisting ad nauseam that President Trump was, ``an illegitimate President.'' Stacey Abrams--another great example--the current Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee, has built a national brand on denying election results and making baseless accusations of suppression and voter fraud. She claimed that she won the 2018 election for Governor and has yet to concede the 2018 race. But we can go all the way back to 2005. Democrats objected in that year to certifying Ohio's electoral votes with Senator Barbara Boxer joining Representative Stephanie Tubbs Jones to require a vote. Madam Speaker, 31 Members of the House voted against certifying these results; 12 of whom are still in Congress today, and I presume those 12 are now supporting this legislation, hypocritically. But this precedent goes back even further than 2005 and 2001. We can take this back to 1961 with President John F. Kennedy. JFK-- this is a great history lesson--drafted his own secret slate of electors declaring himself the winner of Hawaii's electoral votes when the State was originally called for Richard Nixon. Let's just talk about today. Despite the history, today, the actual purpose of this bill is nothing more than an attempt to federalize our elections. This is a way to backdoor H.R. 1 into legislation. This is nothing more than an attack on President Trump and the 2020 election, an attack on a man who has not been in office for nearly 2 years. This is about giving Congress unprecedented authority on how to interpret State law, how to restrict State discretion, and how to impose control on State election officials. Madam Speaker, for those reasons, I urge my colleagues to oppose this rule. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I would remind my colleague and good friend from Massachusetts that he objected to Alabama in 2017, just like my good friend from Maryland objected in 2017 to Florida. Now, as far as this bill being rammed through, I would take a minute to rebut the accusation that it hasn't been rammed through. It absolutely was. We were given almost exactly 24 hours to look at this bill before it came to the Committee on Rules. When we had the hearing in the Committee on Rules, to my knowledge, that was the only hearing that we have had in the House because Chair Lofgren didn't even have the foresight or the willingness to take this through her own committee process, her own committee that she chairs. So I am just saying let's follow the process. And let's be frank about something. If this bill were just about increasing the number of necessary objectors to one-third in this Chamber and one-third in the other Chamber, it might have a chance of passing with bipartisan support. But that is not what this bill does. This bill is a backdoor for H.R. 1. Let me just give you a few examples of extra material in this bill that makes it unpalatable. This bill allows for Presidential candidates to sue to extend the voting period, even after polls have closed, due to a broadly defined catastrophic event. Then a panel of Federal judges, not State election officials, are then responsible for deciding whether States must allow for up to 5 additional days of voting. The real kicker here is that this suit must be filed no more than 1 day after the election. So you can see how a ``catastrophic event'' would probably be any Democrat that is losing on the night of the election. Rather than working with Republicans in a bipartisan manner on a skinny form of an actual reform bill, House Democrats and the January 6 committee are desperately trying to score cheap political points on a bill that does nothing to improve the Electoral Count Act and does everything to take away constitutional and State sovereignty over elections. Let's be blunt about something else. The American people don't care about this, especially when they are dealing with catastrophe after catastrophe and failed policy after failed policy of this administration. So while House Democrats are focusing on a partisan messaging bill that has zero chance of actually becoming law, our southern border just hit a record 2 million border crossings this fiscal year. That is the highest amount ever recorded in a single year. Meanwhile, for the past year-and-a-half, the Biden administration has been transporting illegal immigrants from the southern border to places all over the country, often in the dead of night, and with zero notification to elected officials. That is why if we defeat the previous question, I will personally offer an amendment to the rule immediately to consider H.R. 6592, the Immigration Transparency and Transit Notification Act of 2022. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the Record, along with any extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser), my good friend, who is here to explain more on this amendment.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman from Pennsylvania.

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

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I can tell you that in my area of Pennsylvania, nobody is talking about this. What they are talking about is failed economic policy, failure to support law enforcement, which is leading to both inflation, economic hardship, and some of the highest crime rates we have ever seen on record. I would implore my colleagues across the aisle to actually talk to real Americans, not just the woke yuppies that comprise their voting base, to see what Americans care about. But something tells me that the American people will say loud and clear what they care about come November. It is also rich hearing about all of these ``assaults on democracy.'' Let's just go back to 2019. In 2019, Hillary Clinton said: ``No, it doesn't kill me, because he knows''--meaning Trump--``that he is an illegitimate President.'' So you have the former Presidential candidate calling the former President an illegitimate President. That is clearly echoing some of the sentiments that my friends across the aisle are now accusing us of doing. Adam Schiff, for example, my colleague from California, in his opening statement for the Senate's January 2020 impeachment trial said: ``The President's misconduct cannot be decided at the ballot box, for we cannot be assured that the vote will be fairly won.'' How about that for criticizing and questioning the democratic process? Representative John Lewis, in 2017, said: ``I don't see this President-elect as a legitimate President. I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected, and they helped destroy the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.'' That was a baseless claim based on the Steele dossier that was discredited. Representative Jerry McNerney of California, in 2017: ``The election of Mr. Trump lacks legitimacy.'' Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, just this month--this isn't even the last Presidential election cycle. This was this month, regarding a special election. This month, when discussing Mayra Flores' upset victory in his upcoming election against her, said: ``They stole that last election.'' So it is quite rich hearing all of these accusations now coming from my friends across the aisle. When we call into question election results, it is somehow a threat to democracy. When they do it, they are magically upholding democracy. But it just doesn't stop with my friends across the aisle here in this Chamber. Let's talk about Kamala Harris. She agreed with the radio show host that she should be concerned over Trump's legitimacy. She said: ``We should believe exactly what the intelligence community has told us, which is Russia did interfere in the election of the President in 2017.'' That is the now Vice President saying that. Also, it is absolutely rich that she cites the intelligence community, when they knew the Steele dossier was a product of the Hillary Clinton campaign; the same intelligence community that wasn't able to discern that the Russian interference story was a hoax; the same intelligence community that told us that the Hunter Biden laptop was Russian disinformation, despite knowing that the FBI had that laptop in their possession at the time they made that baseless accusation; the same intel community, by the way, that told us that Kabul would stand strong for months on end and Ukraine would fall within hours. So that is the intel community that my friends across the aisle are citing. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Garbarino), my good friend, to speak more on the issue of immigration and transparency.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I have a lot of respect and admiration for my good friend from California, and he knows that. But if you want to talk about sequels, let's just talk about all the times the Democrats objected to election results. We can go all the way back for decades. Many Democrats, including Hillary Clinton, Barbara Lee, Maxine Waters, and Sheila Jackson Lee, have cast doubt on every single Republican Presidential victory in the last two decades. In fact, every single Democrat President since 1977 has cast doubt on the legitimacy of U.S. elections. I will just go through some of that because my good friend from California said this looks like a sequel to a bad movie. Let's just look at the current administration. In both 2013 and 2016, Biden claimed that Gore won the 2000 Presidential election. In May 2019, Biden said that he ``absolutely'' agrees that Trump is an ``illegitimate President.'' That is the current Democratic President casting doubt on elections. It doesn't stop with him, though. Let's again go to his Vice President, Kamala Harris. In 2019, the Vice President agreed that Trump was an illegitimate President. It is just not those that were elected to office. Let's look at key senior staffers. For nearly two decades, Biden Chief of Staff Ron Klain claimed that Al Gore won the 2000 election. President Biden's press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, tweeted that the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial race was stolen. Jean-Pierre also cast doubt just not on that election but also on the 2016 election by tweeting: ``Stolen election, welcome to the world of #unpresidented Trump.'' Jamal Simmons, the communications director for Kamala Harris, for years tweeted that Bush had stolen the 2000 election. Then-Representative Marcia Fudge of Ohio, now the HUD Secretary, said that Trump ``may not be a legitimate President.'' If you are talking about sequels to bad movies, this goes all the way back to the 1970s, when my friends across the aisle undermined faith in our elections by loose talk and baseless claims that elections were stolen. I will end the list of quotes with this because it is my good friend from Maryland. In 2002, my friend from Maryland wrote that the Supreme Court had ``[frozen] the election results'' in an ``outrageous assault on democracy,'' saying that the Court had determined the outcome of a Presidential election. In 2003, my good friend also called Bush America's first ``court- appointed President.'' I have a litany of other quotes from my friends across the aisle, not only current Members serving in this Chamber but also well-known Democrats from across the United States that have questioned results of elections. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close. Madam Speaker, inflation is at the highest rate in over 40 years, literally the highest rate since I have been alive. The majority of American workers confirmed their income has fallen behind the rising cost of things like buying groceries, paying utility bills, and just filling up their gas tanks. We have set a record for the highest illegal border crossings in 1 year, including 78 individuals on the FBI's terrorist watch list. So far in 2022, homicide rates have increased roughly 50 percent compared to this time in 2019. The Federal Government is also set to run out of funding in 9 days, yet here we are, focused for the second week in a row on trying to attack President Trump, a President that hasn't been in office for nearly 2 years. That is how we are spending our time. House Democrats have chosen once again to put on yet another partisan, political show while the American people are at home suffering the consequences of their failed agenda, suffering the consequences of inflation that is out of control, wages that are dropping, energy costs that are skyrocketing, and crime rates that are making them less safe in their communities. H.R. 8873 tramples on States' rights and would do serious harm to the integrity of our elections. Madam Speaker, for these reasons, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the previous question and ``no'' on the rule, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. RESCHENTHALER

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman and my good friend from Maryland for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the rule before us today provides for consideration for three pieces of legislation that are laser-focused on a President who has not been in office for almost 2 years now. Meanwhile, yesterday's CPI reading came in higher than expected, registering an 8.3 percent year-over-year increase. That is another 40- year high, literally the highest in my lifetime. It is abundantly clear that Democrats are focused on their efforts of political gamesmanship, hoping to distract the American people from the absolute failures of the Biden administration. Let's just go through these bills. The first bill, H.R. 302, makes it even harder for the President to remove insubordinate Federal employees in policy-making roles. All this legislation accomplishes is further shielding unelected career bureaucrats from accountability to the American voter, who are footing the bill for their salary. The Federal Government should be responsive to the voters and their elected Representatives, not the whims and the ideological leanings of unelected bureaucrats. Additionally, this rule provides for consideration of H.R. 2988, the Whistleblower Protection Improvement Act. Let me start by just saying that the need to protect whistleblowers is one of the most bipartisan points of agreement in Congress. However, this legislation does nothing to protect actual whistleblowers. There is a significant difference lost in this bill between retaliation against legitimate whistleblowers and the consequences in response to unacceptable actions taken by a government employee. Finally, the rule provides for consideration of H.R. 8326, Ensuring a Fair and Accurate Census Act. Yet, this bill does everything but ensure a fair and accurate Census. Specifically, H.R. 8326 provides the director of the Census Bureau with unprecedented power and authority to make all operational, statistical, and technical decisions for the Census. Further, this bill constrains the ability of future Censuses to include critical questions, including a citizenship question, ensuring that future Censuses will be unfair and inaccurate. Instead of focusing on real-life issues facing everyday Americans, House Democrats this week are focusing on three bills that are completely irrelevant to the multiple crises created by Joe Biden's policies. In fact, two of these bills have already passed in the House this Congress in larger packages. The failed policies of the far left and the Biden administration have plunged our economy into a recession. And, yes, it is a recession. They have stolen wages from the American workforce, they have destroyed seniors' retirement savings, and they have left families with the highest food prices since 1979. Let me repeat that. Grocery prices surged 13 percent in August, the largest increase in over 40 years. Mr. Speaker, 80 percent of Americans say that inflation is the most important issue facing the country, but you wouldn't know it by the bills the Democrats are prioritizing and running on the floor this week. I think it is time my Democratic colleagues listened to the people and work with Republicans on real economic solutions, rather than doubling down on these dangerous, reckless, out-of-control spending and far-left policy bills, the same policies that have created the crises that we are now facing. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I will double down on the comment that these bills are irrelevant. They are absolutely irrelevant in that two of them are superfluous. One has already passed. One passed in an amendment to the NDAA, and the other one is an unprecedented grant of authority to the Census, which is completely inappropriate. So, yes, these bills, I would argue, are irrelevant. Do you know who would think they are irrelevant? Any person you talk to on the street. If you go up to somebody filling up their gas tank, and you ask them about these three bills, these are irrelevant to their lives. They are worried about the price of gas. If you ask somebody at a grocery store who is trying to feed a family about these bills, these bills are irrelevant to their grocery bill. If you are talking about real wages and fighting the loss of wages and inflation, these bills are irrelevant to that. A lot of blue-collar workers want wages to increase like they did under the last administration, not decrease like they are today. So, yes, these bills are absolutely irrelevant to everyday Americans. But let's just talk about the high cost of inflation. Inflation is the top concern reported by businesses and voters alike. However, instead of working to lower costs for businesses and workers, the SEC proposed burdensome new rules requiring businesses to disclose extensive climate-related data and additional climate risks. That is why if we defeat the previous question, I will personally offer an amendment to the rule to immediately consider H.R. 8589, which would prohibit the SEC's woke climate rule from ever moving forward. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record, along with any extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from the Commonwealth of Kentucky (Mr. Barr), my good friend, to explain the amendment.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for just a few points in rebuttal. Mr. Speaker, we keep hearing that inflation is a global issue, like somehow it is not Biden's fault and the fault of far-left Democrats-- which it is. The reason why this is a global issue--and remind my friends on the other side of the aisle--is because we are the world's largest GDP. We also just happen to be the world's reserve currency. So, of course, when we have inflation, the world will have it. That is just economics. So it is amazing how the principles of economics are just cherry-picked to make points. But I would remind my colleagues of those two facts. In short, we are exporting the inflation. Now, as far as what we are doing to cause the inflation, well, it is pretty simple. We have injected trillions of dollars into the economy. That causes inflation. And then to double down on the failed policy, Joe Biden unilaterally, and I would argue unconstitutionally, canceled the debt of a swath of college students so you now have even more liquidity in the market because of them. And the sick irony here is that the guy that is driving the pickup truck, the guy that went to school to be a plumber, an HVAC repairman, that guy is now subsidizing the lawyer who is driving to his downtown job in a BMW. That is what is so perverse about what is happening. Now let's just talk about gas prices. My colleague and my friend from Maryland said gas prices are down. Yeah, they are down from like a week ago; they are not down from January 2021 when they were less than $2.50 a gallon. So let's continue to move that goalpost. You can't argue that gas prices are up. Americans know gas prices are up. They are feeling the pain at the pump. They are also feeling it in the higher cost of all energy and food. Finally, blaming Putin on gas prices and issues. Yeah, Putin is partially to blame, but who encouraged Putin to invade Ukraine? That would be Joe Biden by his surrender of Afghanistan. Let me be clear that any weakness on the foreign stage is an indication of aggression. When Joe Biden showed weakness by abandoning the Bagram Air Base, by leaving our allies on the ground to predations of the Taliban, that was weakness, and Putin seized on that to invade Ukraine. Instead of giving the Ukrainians the MiGs they needed, the proper military supplies they needed, we decided to go halfway. Joe Biden didn't fully commit. Now we have a protracted war in Ukraine, which is going to lead to a humanitarian crisis not only in Central Europe but all across Africa, for example, and higher energy prices here. Mr. Speaker, but that is all traced back to Biden being weak on foreign policy. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Barr).

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I let my good friend from Maryland know that I like him, too, and I would certainly clarify the remarks on Putin. I will denounce Putin right now. Remember, I was the one calling in the beginning of this conflict for a no-fly zone to be established led by the United States. I don't think there is anybody more hawkish on Russia and the Ukraine issue than myself on this side of the aisle. So, to say that I was up here defending Putin is ludicrous. We, of course, needed to beat Putin. We should have been much more engaged from the beginning of this conflict, not just to send a message to the Russians but to send a message to the Iranians and a message to the Chinese vis-a-vis Taiwan. But I could go on. I would say it is a total mischaracterization of my position to say that I am up here saying good things about dictator Putin. I remind my friend from Maryland about the history of this building. In 1814, it was literally burned to the ground. In the seventies, Puerto Rican separatists stormed in and detonated a bomb. So, let's just get the historical context in place. As far as denouncing violence, everyone on this side of the aisle has denounced political violence consistently. The inconsistency is from my friends from across the other side of the aisle who cherry-pick when they denounce political violence. I remember that during the entire summer of 2020, my friends across the aisle treated the destructive BLM and antifa protests that caused $2 billion worth of damage, they treated those protesters with kid gloves. You had the current Vice President paying the bail for the protesters. You had the gentlewoman from New York, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, saying: ``The whole point of protesting is to make people uncomfortable. . . . To folks who complain protest demands make others uncomfortable, that is the point.'' Those are the words of the Democrats, not of us. We could go on. Chris Cuomo, CNN host: ``Please, show me where it says protesters are supposed to be polite and peaceful.'' The last time I checked, that was a Democrat. New York BLM cofounder Hawk Newsome said in response to Eric Adams trying to put plainclothes police officers on the street: ``There will be riots; there will be fire; and there will be bloodshed.'' It sounds to me that the political violence and the support for the rhetoric that is coming to support political violence and upheaval are coming from one side of the aisle, the Democrat side of the aisle. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Barr) for more rebuttal.

Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I am prepared to close, and I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned earlier, the CPI just released yesterday shows that prices have increased 8.3 percent from August of last year. Real wages are down 2.8 percent. The cost of electricity has skyrocketed 15.8 percent. That is the most since 1981, the most since I was alive. As of August, nearly one quarter of all Americans reported forgoing basic needs like food and medicine just to be able to afford their energy bill. This number will only get worse because we are going to face even higher costs to heat our homes this winter, with natural gas prices nearing a 14-year high. Yet, Democrats want to focus their efforts on, again, I would call it, irrelevant legislation that has already passed the House. It will not provide any relief to American workers and American families. For these reasons, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the previous question and to vote ``no'' on the rule. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.