Steve Scalise

Mr. SCALISE

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, if we wanted to pass another CARES Act-type piece of legislation, as we have seen in both other CARES Act bills, you have a lot of willingness and interest on this side of the aisle, which was there on both of those votes. Clearly, there are things in Heroes that there is no bipartisan consensus on. So, our party is willing and ready to go another round on those items we agree on, and not months from now, not months ago, as it should have been done. It should be done today. Hopefully, it will be done when we return. I would be happy to work with the gentleman on those items. If the gentleman has nothing else, then I would be happy to yield back.

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman. There are a few items relating to legislation that I want to bring up with the gentleman, but before that, I did want to mention that it is my understanding that the floor director for the majority leader, Ms. Shuwanza Goff--the last thing I would want to do is embarrass her here on the House floor, but it is my understanding she may be leaving.

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I rise for the purpose of inquiring to the majority leader the schedule for next week. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), my friend and the majority leader of the House.

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I would be happy to yield time to her if she would like to deny that rumor, but while that may create some issues, I would like to say that, if this is the last time that we do this colloquy before the end of this year, it has been a true pleasure to work with Shuwanza Goff. My whole staff has enjoyed working with her, and especially on those areas where we agree--the CARES Act and USMCA come to mind as recent major accomplishments that this legislative body has done together, Republicans and Democrats--and she, I know, has been that conduit who works with our staff on the Republican side. We considered it a true joy to work with her. She doesn't schedule every bill I ask her to schedule, but I will blame that on the majority leader, not on Shuwanza. Mr. Speaker, if I can, in all seriousness, say, it has truly been a treat and a joy, and she is one of the people who makes this place work when it does work. We can always talk about the things that we would like to achieve that we can't, but there are many important things we achieve, like those important pieces of legislation I talked about and many others that don't get that same kind of attention, but they wouldn't happen without the work and the great leadership that Shuwanza has demonstrated here. She will be missed here, and I just wanted to mention that. I know the gentleman feels probably even stronger, because she has worked for him for the whole time I have been in leadership, but, I think, going back to maybe 2008. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. SCALISE. I think the generosity probably ends there with today's colloquy. I am sure we will have that opportunity next week to have a longer conversation, but I truly do want to pass that on to Shuwanza, and not just on behalf of myself, but on behalf of the minority leader, Mr. McCarthy, and his staff, as well as mine, and all of us in leadership who get to work with her. Mr. Speaker, I do want to mention, on the schedule next week, one of the items that I know we have worked on together and talked about that I believe the gentleman has scheduled for next week is S. 578, which is the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act, something that we have worked on, a number of these items, for people with ALS. The Steve Gleason Act was one of those items we worked on a few years ago, passed to help people with ALS, and has been a tremendous, tremendous benefit to people struggling with ALS. Steve Gleason is a constituent and a dear friend, somebody whom we have worked with on many things. He received earlier this year--it seems like years ago, but just January of this year, he was the recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal, and deservedly so. He and I were communicating earlier this week about this legislation, which I am a cosponsor of, and I just want to thank the gentleman for scheduling that for the floor next week. One of those areas, as you were talking about earlier, that might not get a lot of attention but an issue that both Republicans and Democrats have worked on is to help people with ALS who, right now, under current law, even after the diagnosis with ALS--as we know, it is just a devastating diagnosis--have to wait 5 months to get the normal benefits that they are entitled to. And time is very, very critical to people with ALS. This eliminates that 5-month gap where they would have to wait, one of those additional occasions where it takes an act of Congress to fix this. The Senate acted, and quickly, now, the House will be acting to address this deficiency that needs to be fixed. I think you will see both sides come together with a very large vote, but I thank the gentleman for scheduling that for the floor next week. I yield to the gentleman, if you have anything to add on that.

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I will give this assurance to the majority leader, that if you are looking for a replacement, I would be happy to provide recommendations and even participate in the interview process, if that would be helpful to the gentleman from Maryland.

Mr. SCALISE

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, 23 Democrats, just a few days ago sent a letter to the Speaker saying, ``Passing a bipartisan COVID-19 relief package should be our number one priority in the coming days. It is our request that you continue to negotiate towards a bipartisan deal. Otherwise, a discharge petition is the only potential option for COVID- 19 related action. . . . '' That was 23 Democrats. Mr. Speaker, that is enough people, if they go down, right over there and sign that discharge petition, it will bring that bipartisan relief package bill to the floor, helping small businesses. We already helped millions of small businesses stay afloat with the original Paycheck Protection Program, an incredibly bipartisan success story that we came together to pass. Over 50 million jobs were saved by that. Mr. Speaker, we know now some of those businesses are doing better, but some of those businesses are still struggling, in fact, dying on the vine. And this bill will give them relief. They can go for a second round of relief requests, PPP funding with money that already exists, not $2.2 trillion borrowed from China. Let's pass a real bill, the Chabot bill. Let's reject this partisan exercise.

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to this partisan bill that is not focused on helping families and small businesses. Everybody in this Chamber knows that this bill is going nowhere because they didn't even work with Republicans to try to draft a proposal that could actually address the needs of families who are struggling. There is a bill already filed at the door right over there, a bill that would help every small business, renew the Paycheck Protection Program using existing money--there are $138 billion frozen in an account that we unlock with Chabot's bill. Congressman Chabot has a bill with a discharge petition that would actually, in a bipartisan way, help small businesses go for a second round of Paycheck Protection funding. And what do we get? Do we get today a bill that was brought together by both sides to solve this problem? No, we don't. We have a bill that was drawn up basically using the old-failed roadmap of the original Heroes Act. Now they had the Heroes Act passed in a partisan way--it was never going to go anywhere--months ago. Did they say, okay, let's work with Republicans? Let's work with the President? No, they didn't. They said, Okay, we want to present a scaled-down bill. Mr. Speaker, when they scaled the bill down, did they cut the billions of dollars of funding to illegal immigrants that was in the original Heroes Act? No, they didn't. Did they cut the hundreds of billions of dollars that go to failed States, States that had billion-dollar deficits prior to COVID? No, they kept that money. And in fact, if you look at the things that had nothing to do with COVID--for example, mandating that States that currently require picture IDs have to remove that, ballot harvesting, which we have seen in so many States, leads to voter fraud. That is what is in the original Heroes Act. That still remains in this bill. What does that have to do with COVID relief? And so if you look, take the original bill, the original Heroes Act had $600 million for police funding, community policing, things that have been proven effective to make our community safer, that was in the original Heroes Act. When they decided to cut--again, they didn't cut the billions for people here illegally, they still get cash payments if they are here illegally. They cut the police, zeroed out--$600 million defunding the police at a time when our communities need help. This was the original bill. The $600 million, it is gone. That is what they cut. They kept the illegal money, checks going to illegals. Everybody knows this bill is going nowhere because it is a partisan hack job.

Mr. SCALISE

Mr. SCALISE. With that warm tribute, Madam Speaker, clearly, we work well together. We have a comity with each other. You have to keep your sanity around here by keeping things lighthearted in the middle of a lot of heated battles sometimes. But in the meantime, when you think about the friendships--and I will share my story about John shortly. There is a townhouse that John Shimkus owns here in Washington, D.C., and it is a four-bedroom townhouse. There are four Members of Congress who live in that townhouse. We each have our own bedrooms and bathrooms, but we come together. It has been, I think, a special part of all of our times up here in Congress to get to know each other so well. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Brady), the Member of Congress who has lived in the townhouse with John the longest, probably going back to when he purchased it, our dear friend, colleague, and roommate.

Mr. SCALISE. As you can see, Madam Speaker, these are tough jobs, these are tough times, but when you come up to Congress, you don't just come up here to fight for the things you believe in. That is clearly why you run. We all have a deep love for this country. We all have a deep set of beliefs that we come to try to advocate for. But we all know, in a job like this, you can't do it alone. You need to work with other people. You need to find allies, people who want to help join you in that cause to advance the things you believe in. And along that way, Madam Speaker, you truly do make deep friendships. I remember, I was a new Member in a special election. I came in towards the tail end of a Congress in 2008 with only 6 months left in the term. I didn't really know anybody here. I was trying to find my way, in fact, trying to find a place to live. I was living with one of my college roommates who works up here in D.C. They had a baby on the way, and I was staying in the baby's room, so I knew I had a few weeks left before I had to find another place to live. So I asked my colleague right over there, I asked Jim McCrery, the Congressman from Louisiana, I said: Jim, I am looking for a place. What do you do to find a place around here? He said: Well, you know, John Shimkus has an opening at his town house. I said: Who is John Shimkus? I didn't know John. And he literally pointed, and John was right there in the well of the House during a vote series. So all the Members of Congress were joined together, and he points John out. I walked down, and I introduced myself to John. I said: I heard you have an opening at your town house. I just came here, and I am looking for a place to stay. He said: Why don't you come by later tonight. And that, Madam Speaker, started an incredible friendship. That next day, I called my wife, Jennifer, that night and I said: I think I found a place to live.'' That next day I moved in. I didn't really know Kevin Brady, and next thing you know, I am rooming with these gentlemen and getting to know people who became dear friends. And again, in a job like this, you work really hard advocating for the things that you ran on back home. You are fighting for the people in your district. I am honored to represent southeast Louisiana. But you are also working with some incredible people, and you get to meet incredible people along the way. John Shimkus is truly, as Kevin said, one of those true, genuine people, somebody you can entrust the things that you want to share with only a few people. Close friendships do form up here. You don't hear about that a lot, yet we were able to form such a deep friendship, somebody you can trust. As Kevin said, John went to West Point. He is an Army guy, so he was the drill sergeant in the town house. And when John says something, you back your brother's play. In fact, the second day I was in the town house, John said: Steve, tomorrow you have got to get up at 6 in the morning, and we are going out to play baseball. I didn't know about the tradition between the Democrats and Republicans. I guess I have John to blame. John said: You have got to come out for the baseball team. I hadn't played baseball in over 25 years. I didn't even have a glove, and yet, next thing you know, the next morning I am up playing baseball. And, boy, what a start of, again, an ability to generate even more friendships, to forge friendships with people on both sides of the aisle, some that you work with on a regular basis, some that you are not always working with, but people you get to form a deep friendship with. And that is really what makes Congress work. It is not the things that you see on the nightly news, the big fights that go on between the parties and sometimes within the parties, but it is the day-to-day grind where people do come together and find common ground to advance the things that they believe in to make this a greater nation. And John Shimkus has done that on so many fronts. I got to see it. Yes, he is the first one up. He is reading his Bible. He is writing down verses. But when it is time to leave, he starts to whistle. And you don't need an alarm clock. When John starts to whistle, that means it is time to go to work. And, again, he is just a person who wakes up and goes to work for the people of southern Illinois and the United States of America, just like he served our country in the military. For 24 years, he served this great Nation. We are a better nation because John Shimkus has been a Member of this wonderful body, the people's House. This is really where people come together. I started this morning in Philadelphia. I had some meetings there, and I actually, on my way out, passed by Independence Hall. You never can see that enough. I got to see the Liberty Bell this morning. I got to go see the chamber where George Washington sat as they signed the Declaration of Independence, where they wrote the Constitution of the United States, right next door, the chamber where Congress met for 10 years when they were building this beautiful building, where they actually passed the Bill of Rights. We are all honored to be a part of this special place where people of all walks of life come together. And you meet people of different backgrounds, you work with people of different backgrounds, and you work to make this a better country. And you just hope, you just pray, as you are praying to God for strength, for wisdom, for guidance, as we all do, that whenever you leave--we all leave this job; hopefully, you leave on your own terms--if you look back, you can say that you left your mark, you made this a better country. John Shimkus, you left your mark. You get to leave on your own terms. You get to go home with Karen and enjoy your life in southern Illinois. You have earned this opportunity to have a new chapter in your life because you can look back and say, for 24 years, you served here in this great body and made this a better institution and made this a better country because of your service. Thank you, John, for this opportunity to get to know you so well. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCALISE. Thank you, Dean Young. We are going to check that record. I know I am glad I never went up against you, although you have taken a few of us to the woodshed. Madam Speaker, keeping with the bipartisan tradition, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. McNerney), our friend on the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this Special Order.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, tonight we are going to spend the next hour paying tribute to a special man who has served here in this Congress since 1997, our dear friend, Congressman John Shimkus. John came to Congress back at a time when you saw a lot more collegiality. In fact, Madam Speaker, tonight we have Republicans and Democrats on this floor who are going to be talking about John Shimkus, the man; John Shimkus, our friend; John Shimkus, the legislator, somebody who, when he retires, will have a proud record of achievement showing how he made his mark on this great Nation. We are joined in this House Chamber tonight by John's lovely wife, Karen, who is here tonight. His son, Josh, is not far from the Chamber. We have many friends, and I know we have a limited amount of time. First, Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), the dean of the House.

Mr. SCALISE

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, normally, we would do the colloquy with the majority leader. He and I will not be doing that this week, but I know we do still have real concerns about those families and businesses that are struggling today through these difficult times. Many of those businesses were able to get relief through the Paycheck Protection Program, a program that we all came together to get agreement on, to help millions of small businesses. Over 50 million jobs were saved by that program. We also know there is about $138 billion still remaining in that fund, but the fund has expired. So I want to bring attention to things we can do together to alleviate that, to help those small businesses with that remaining money, and to talk about that more. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Herrera Beutler). Request to Discharge Committee from Further Consideration of H.R. 8265

Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, we will still push the majority to put that bill on the suspension calendar. We have no doubt it would pass overwhelmingly. We will continue to fight for those small businesses.

Mr. SCALISE

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker. I rise today to congratulate the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) on their 80th anniversary. Formed in 1940, IADC's roughly 550 U.S. member companies employ more than 70,000 hardworking men and women and have played an invaluable role in bringing American energy to individuals, families, and small businesses all across our country. The thousands of people who work each day to bring energy to market are essential to the State of Louisiana and to American energy independence. Energy produced in the Gulf of Mexico and throughout the country is crucial not only here at home, but also to our friends around the globe. American energy exploration and production helps keep energy prices low for families and small businesses, provides millions of people with good-paying jobs, and prevents hostile foreign regimes from using their energy resources to harm our allies. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown has hit energy-producing states, and the jobs and communities they support, especially hard. It has crushed energy demand, and a foreign price war earlier this year exacerbated an already dire situation. This combination resulted in devastating lay-offs, oil prices plummeting to negative for the first time in history, and billions of dollars of planned investments lost. But America's oil and gas workers are extraordinarily resilient, and the industry will recover from this downturn. The United States has vast reserves of oil and natural gas, resources that are produced here at home with some of the highest standards and safest technologies for energy exploration and production in the entire world. lADC has been, and will continue to be, a large part of that success. I applaud IADC and the women and men who work each and every day to bring energy to individuals and families all across our country. I appreciate their work to advance innovation with a focus on safety, and I wish IADC continued success and another fantastic 80 years.

Mr. SCALISE

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I would tell the gentleman it is not hope that you have to have. This is all about science. Name one of these companies that would put their name on a drug that would be injected into American people based on politics or based on a timeline that would have an impact on an election? Not one of these companies would do it. I would challenge anyone to name a company that would do that, because they wouldn't do that. So it is not a hope. If the FDA approves one of these drugs or all of these drugs, it is because they work, they save lives. And we can't have an undermined confidence that they would save lives--because a vaccine is not something that a President or a candidate for President sits in a lab and figures out. It is a very serious process that the FDA, who is the most respected agency in the world for drug approval, has to sign off on every step of the way. There are three phases. These are the companies that made it all the way through. There are other companies that are in earlier stages and may actually get to an FDA-approved vaccine, as well, and they are all very well respected, too, but these are the only companies. There is no mystery company. These are the companies that are in competition, not with themselves, but they are trying to save lives. And from everything we are hearing, the results are tremendously successful. We should be applauding that. Operation Warp Speed has gotten us to this point, and while the President might not get credit--and I think it is an important point, as the gentleman talks about instilling confidence, where the President is on science. I have been in many of those meetings with Dr. Fauci, with Dr. Birx, with the whole team of the whole coronavirus task force.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman. As we look at the various topics that the gentleman from Maryland brought up on the negotiations, if you looked at the Senate bill--and, clearly, there are multiple bills out there--ultimately, it is going to take a bipartisan bill working with the administration. Mr. Meadows has been here many times working, trying to meet, sometimes not being able to get meetings with some leaders. But at the same time, if you look at the Senate bill, they did include some enhanced unemployment. They included more money for small businesses, for families, for testing. They had $16 billion for testing, $31 billion for vaccine, which I know--I want to bring that up. They had $20 billion for farmers, $15 billion for childcare. They did have liability protection, which continues to be a very big issue many small businesses bring up. They want to make sure that, if they open safely, they are not going to be shut down by frivolous lawsuits. That is something that there has been a lot of negotiation about as well. But, ultimately, when you look at those differences, we will hopefully get that resolved. In the meantime, if that can't get broken, at a minimum, if we can look at some of the money that is unspent because, in addition to the PPP, I think the gentleman knows, we also put about $150 billion in the CARES Act toward our States to help all of our States, a formula that allowed States and, in some cases, local governments get money to help themselves through these tough times. There is not one State that has spent all that money. And I know some people want to talk about how much more money to give, but if they haven't spent the money they have already gotten, maybe we can look there as another way to help push more relief, including with schools. If a school wants to reopen safely--and I would encourage all schools, the protocols have been out there. The Centers for Disease Control have put out very good, responsible safety protocols for safely reopening schools, and it varies, depending on the kind of region you are in. If you have a spike, there is a way to handle that. If you are in an area that has not seen a prevalence of COVID, then there is a different way to handle it. But in every case, there is a way to safely reopen schools. The American Academy of Pediatrics has laid that out as well. It means following the safety guidelines, but it can be done and needs to be done. Unfortunately, in every case it is not being done, but it is not for lack of money. Any school system that needs more assistance, whether it is masks or screens for the teachers or whatever else they might need, sanitizer, the funds that we sent to the States, again, none of which have spent all of that money, can be used to help to safely reopen schools as well. So those are all conversations we will hopefully have. I do want to then talk about where we are with a vaccine, because we have been seeing a lot more reports on the progress, the tremendous progress that has been made within the medical community. And we know from the very beginning of this disease that our frontline healthcare workers have been some of the heroes, probably the biggest heroes of all of this, those hospital workers, the nurses, the doctors, but also those people working in the labs. Almost instantly after China lied to us about the origination of the disease, lied to us about even whether or not the disease could be spread from person to person they corrupted the WHO. But ultimately as we started to find out what was coming out of Wuhan, I don't know, even the Foreign Affairs Committee of this House majority had a hearing titled: ``The Wuhan Coronavirus.'' So clearly, we know where this started. It has been discussed. But at the same time, we have been working feverishly to find a cure, to find a vaccine. We have seen therapies emerge at a rapid pace. President Trump implemented Operation Warp Speed, which was a way to get red tape out of the way. Nobody is cutting corners on safety, but ultimately what we are all doing is focusing all the energy and the weight of this Federal Government behind finding a cure and a vaccine, and what we are seeing now is remarkable success in progress. Here are some of the companies that right now are in phase 3 of testing on an actual vaccine for COVID-19. These are all very respected companies, not only in America, but worldwide, globally respected. I am concerned by some of the comments we are starting to see by some people trying to undermine the public's confidence in a vaccine if it were to be approved by the FDA. And let's keep in mind, the FDA would have to approve any vaccine. You have to get approved by the FDA to go to phase 2. You have to get approved to go to phase 3, and then ultimately after testing on tens of thousands of people at a pace we have never seen before--with money, by the way, that we helped pass, and again, the gentleman and I both were part of those coalitions, Republican and Democrat, working to put money in place for that testing, for the work that is being done by these great companies to start now making the vaccine vials, a hundred million vials possibly that could be made before the drug is approved if, in fact, it then gets that approval, so that you don't have to wait to start mass producing after the approval. If the FDA does approve any or all of these drugs as a vaccine that would actually prevent COVID-19, I hope we would both encourage people, if they wanted to, to then go and get that vaccine. And this is, hopefully, not going to be a debate within the country. Hopefully, it is going to be a recognition that America has the best scientific minds in the world. We have the most respected drug companies in the world, and they are working feverishly, not cutting a single corner on safety. These would have to be safe and effective drugs for the FDA to approve them, but if any one or all of them get approved, then I would hope we would encourage people to go and protect their families, if that is what they want to do. And I know a lot of people that would want to do it. I have heard from some people, as I am sure the gentleman has, that they may want to wait a little while. But I also know that people want to be safe and secure in their homes. They want to have a confidence level that they are not going to be at risk of dying from COVID. And ultimately a vaccine and a therapy are the final answer that gets us over the hump, that gets us to where we can fully start reopening. We are seeing many States at advanced levels of opening their economy, but we also know that we are not where we need to be, and a vaccine is probably going to be that biggest determining point that helps people reopen in a much more effective way. I hope we can at least agree that if that approval comes by the FDA that it is something we can all embrace and encourage people to pursue, if that is what they feel is best for their family. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. SCALISE. He has been in some of those meetings, too. And as the gentleman knows, not all doctors agree.

Mr. SCALISE. As I was addressing it to the Speaker, of course.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, reclaiming my time. Madam Speaker, we all appreciate Tom's service to our country and especially to this Chamber. Now, if I may inquire of the majority leader the schedule for next week, and I would yield.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, reclaiming my time. Obviously, we will have an opportunity to continue, as we should, this tribute to Tom Wickham. So, Tom, congratulations on what you have done to preserve the integrity of this institution. We come here as Republicans, Democrats, as Americans first, but people who all have their own views. Even if you are Republican, we don't all think exactly the same way, as Democrats don't always think the same way. But we come here to achieve certain things, to make this a more perfect Union in the ways in which our districts--our 750,000, roughly, people elect us to come and be part of this democracy, the world's greatest democracy. You come and work with other people. Sometimes, you battle with other people in the arena of legislative ideas. It is not physical confrontation, as the majority leader pointed out. But sometimes, you have to persuade. Sometimes, you have to fight for your beliefs. But ultimately, if you are going to achieve the things you came here to do, you have to change legislation. It takes an act of Congress, as they say. When you do that, you have to follow the rules. The Jefferson Manual that goes back to 1801 are the rules that govern this great House. If there is a bill on the floor and you wish to make a change to that bill, you want to offer an amendment to the bill, bring a motion to recommit on the bill, you have to work within the rules. Those rules are interpreted not by the majority, not by the minority, but by the Parliamentarian. The job you have done for 25 years in the Parliamentarian's Office, but especially since 2011 as the House Parliamentarian, you don't always tell people what they want to hear, but you tell people what is the right way to do something according to the rules that we have established so that there is a fair process. A lot of people don't see this back and forth. If the Parliamentarian rules against you, it is not a personal thing. In many cases, a Member will go to the Parliamentarian, Republican or Democrat--I have done this myself--and said, ``This is what I would like to achieve.'' Sometimes, they tell you that you can't do it on that bill because there are germaneness issues. But sometimes, there is that gray area where if you are trying to do it this way, it won't work, but if you try to do it another way, it actually would work. That is really the art of the ability of a Parliamentarian, to work with Members of Congress to help them achieve the things they are trying to do. We still have to go and get the votes, but at least allowing a Member that opportunity to go fight it out and make their case. In many cases, that case wouldn't be able to be made if the Parliamentarian wasn't fair in offering that guidance to Members of Congress, whatever they are trying to achieve, whatever their background, whatever their district, to be fair and to at least give them that opportunity to come here on the House floor and fight that battle, hopefully right that wrong, and advance the things that they were elected to go do to make this a more perfect Union. So thank you, Tom, for that fairness. I know as Jason takes on this role in a few weeks, he will have a great legacy to build upon and to look toward somebody who did the job right and served this country in a very proud and respected way. I know Heather is probably watching on C-SPAN. I am not sure how many other people are, but Heather, hopefully, is, your wife. She will have more time to work with you. I am not sure who the parliamentarian of your house is. I am the House Republican whip, but in my house, Jennifer is the one who plays that role. But in your house, hopefully, Heather sees you more, because you are here when we are here, and sometimes those are late hours, and sometimes those are long weekends. We appreciate the sacrifices you have made. Hopefully, in this next role in your life, you will be able to enjoy more time with your wife, Heather, and your family. We truly do thank you for playing this part of your role in history and adding to what is great about this great democracy. Do you mind standing up so everybody in the Chamber here can see you and pay the proper tribute? Madam Speaker, I yield to my friend.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I rise for the purpose of inquiring of the majority leader the schedule for next week. Madam Speaker, I am happy to yield to my friend, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the House majority leader. Honoring Retiring Parliamentarian Thomas J. Wickham, Jr.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I know we will continue this conversation. Hopefully, the bill gets filed tomorrow, and we can resolve more of these issues next week. I look forward to seeing the gentleman and working with him on all of these. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCALISE. Madam Speaker, I never suggested that. In fact, I said at the outset that these companies are in direct communication with the FDA on a regular basis. That is what Operation Warp Speed is. In the old way of doing things, these companies would have submitted their data and would have waited months while some faceless bureaucrat let it sit on a desk and nothing happened. Instead, what the President did was said there will be direct contacts where they can communicate with the FDA. They are not the enemy. These companies aren't the enemy. The FDA is not the enemy. But it shouldn't be viewed as you are on one side and you are on the other side. They are both working together because they are both part of the smartest scientific community in the world. They work together because the FDA wants to get it right and these companies want to get it right. We saw one of them just a few days ago. They had a pause, which is the protocol. That is the safety protocol because there was a question in the testing, and they addressed it. I am sure there were many. I don't know directly, but I am sure there were many conversations with the FDA. But then they started up again, which means there wasn't a problem. But it meant they followed the protocols, which say, if you see something that you need to go review, you hold off, and then you go check that out. That is what one of these did, and now they are back on track. The others continue to go through, all of them, working with the FDA. That is really what this is about. It is about a partnership because the FDA has to sign off. I am sure the gentleman would agree. You want to make sure you have multiple people looking at it. You don't just want the company that is making the drug looking at it. You want the regulator looking at it as well because, ultimately, they have to sign off on it. They are not doing it blindly. No one suggests that. But they are doing it with a much sharper focus. It is the top priority, I think we would all agree. This needs to be the priority to get our country back on track, and it has to be done right. But it is not going to get signed off if it is not right. So, it is a partnership, and it is working incredibly well. Again, this new partnership ought to be the model in the future. It shouldn't be the exception just because of COVID. It is working incredibly well. We worked together to pass the 21st Century Cures Act, which ultimately will find a cure for cancer, for Alzheimer's, for ALS, for other diseases. It is because we put a sharper focus over at the National Institutes of Health, and we put additional resources over at the National Institutes of Health. That priority, what we are learning from this, ought to be replicated to help find a cure for some of those other diseases so that maybe we can find even more cures for people who are living today, not just for somebody 30 years from now, but for somebody struggling today with one of those terrible diseases. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman.