Austin Scott

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Our national debt is $35 trillion. The current deficit is $2.5 trillion. We are not at war, and we are not in the middle of a healthcare emergency. I will admit the national debt went up a lot during COVID. We did a lot of things very quickly to help the American citizens. Some of that spending was necessary and all of that spending was bipartisan, unlike what the Democrats did with what they call the Inflation Reduction Act and the American Rescue Plan where they spent $3 trillion without a single Republican vote and didn't even put the money through the appropriations process. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, so I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I just want to remind everybody that H.R. 8752 provides $600 million for construction of the southern border wall. That is the cheapest and most effective way to stop illegal immigration. If President Biden wanted to stop about 80 percent of it right now, then he could simply put the remain in Mexico policies back in place that were actually working, but that would be an acknowledgement that President Trump was right. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Langworthy).

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. I think it is very obvious to every American.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. I think that if you build a border wall, you solve a tremendous amount of the problems at the border. Moreover, if President Biden cared and wanted to do something about it, he could simply put remain in Mexico back in place.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. I absolutely believe that it will help secure the southern border. There is $100 million in funding for a physical barrier. That is the cheapest and most effective way to do it. The President right now, President Joe Biden right now could put remain in Mexico back in place and stop 70 to 80 percent of it.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. My colleague from Colorado didn't give me a chance to answer the question, but the bottom line is, with the proper policies in place, you don't have to spend as much money. H.R. 2 would secure the border, and if H.R. 2 were signed into law, you might actually be able to reduce the spending under this appropriations measure, but I am not positive about that. I believe if H.R. 2 were the law, the border would be secure. We would be removing people who are violent criminals who are illegally in this country. You have to admit that a lot of these other countries have been very smart about emptying the worst of their society into the United States of America. I am not saying that everybody who comes here illegally is a bad person, but I am saying the leaderships of countries are sending the worst of their country into America. It has to be stopped. If the policies of H.R. 2 were put in place, then you could actually reduce the spending. $35 trillion in debt, and $2\1/2\ trillion deficit--yes, we had deficits under President Trump. We did things like the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. In very rapid time, we bought crops like corn from farmers, who I personally know, because they didn't have anybody to sell to. We actually gave it to Americans who would have starved if we hadn't done some of those things during the COVID emergency. We are not in a healthcare emergency. We are not at war. President Biden is still running a $2\1/2\ trillion deficit for the year. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Alford).

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask my friend and colleague from Colorado if he has additional speakers or if he is prepared to close.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, our recollections of the last couple of years are a little different. I remember Senate Democrats, without a single Republican vote, adopting what they call the Inflation Reduction Act, which spurred inflation inside the United States of America. I remember them passing what they refer to as the American Rescue Plan, which spurred inflation inside the United States of America. Those two pieces of legislation spent better than $3 trillion without a single Republican vote. I then remember, in December, the Senate passed an omnibus bill. Yes, there were a few Republicans who voted with every Democrat to pass that omnibus bill. What the Senate did, with the support of the President of the United States, is when they spent all of that money, they intentionally did not raise the national debt to pay for all the spending that they did, where, in some cases, Democrats were 100 percent of the votes, and in others, they were probably 97, 98 percent of the votes. That was done for political reasons, to put Republicans in a bad position. Then, under Speaker McCarthy, the country watched as Joe Biden laughed and said House Republicans are going to destroy the economy by not raising the national debt to pay for all the spending that the Democrats did, and Speaker McCarthy actually got it done. He actually got it done. I voted for it. I didn't vote for all the spending, but I had to vote for the debt limit increase. Actually, there were some spending reductions in there. If you recall, Mr. Speaker, one of the agreements was that President Biden would no longer pay off student debt. Public funds would no longer be used to pay off student debt. What did the President of the United States do? As soon as the agreement is signed, as soon as the debt limit is raised, he turned around and started doing exactly what he said he wouldn't do. Bipartisanship is very hard when you have a President who doesn't do what he says he is going to do, and he is a member of the other party. One last thing before I close. Republicans adopted the continuing resolution to keep the government open. The payback that Speaker McCarthy got for adopting that continuing resolution is that every member of the Democratic Party voted with about six members of the Republican Party to remove him from office. So, let's not pretend like when Republicans do what it takes to keep the government open and to keep the government from going into default that our leadership team doesn't pay a price for it. You all have done things that have never been done in the history of the country. You have provided 95 percent of the votes to do things that have never been done in modern times--really, in the history of the country. Mr. Speaker, this week, the House has the ability to advance 3 of the 12 annual appropriations bills. These bills fund programs and policies that put the interests of the American people first and prioritize the core missions of the departments they fund. They put the mission ahead of the agenda. They provide for our national defense, counter our adversaries, and empower our servicemembers who answer the call to defend our country. They support our allies around the world and prohibit funds for international organizations that seek to undercut the interests of the United States and our allies. They provide critical funding to defend our southern border and prohibit funding for programs and agendas that have distracted from this goal and led to the immigration crisis that we currently face as a country. These are good bills, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting ``yes'' on the previous question and ``yes'' on the rule.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 1287 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Scanlon), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, last night, the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 1287, providing for consideration of three measures including H.R. 8070, the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025, to be considered under a structured rule. The rule provides for 1 hour of debate, equally controlled by the chair and ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, provides for one motion to recommit, and makes 350 amendments in order. Additionally, the rule provides for consideration of House Report 118-527 and the accompanying resolution recommending that the House of Representatives find United States Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with a subpoena duly issued by the Committee on the Judiciary. The rule also provides that upon adoption of the resolution accompanying House Report 118-527, the resolution accompanying House Report 118-533 is adopted. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to support the rule and the underlying pieces of legislation, beginning with H.R. 8070, the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025. Madam Speaker, under Chairman Rogers' leadership, as well as the leadership of Ranking Member Adam Smith, the bipartisan fiscal year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act passed the Armed Services Committee by a vote of 57-1. It significantly improves the quality of life for our servicemembers. It deters our adversaries, supports our allies, and focuses on our military readiness and our national security. According to several top national security officials, our country is facing serious threats to our democracy and freedom at levels that we haven't seen since World War II. It is imperative for our national security that our servicemembers and their families are supported and that they can focus on their mission. Ahead of the NDAA, Chairman Rogers established the Quality of Life Panel to evaluate the quality of life of our servicemembers. The panel found that servicemembers' quality of life concerns are a major cause of low morale and family stress, which are undermining recruitment, retention, and military readiness. The National Defense Authorization Act puts our servicemembers and their families first and addresses many of the issues found by the Quality of Life Panel. The legislation improves servicemembers' quality of life by boosting compensation, improving housing, ensuring access to medical care, enhancing support for military spouses, and increasing access to childcare. Through the tireless work of the House Armed Services Committee and Rules Committee staff, the NDAA advances important policies to support our warfighters at home and abroad and to deter our adversaries. It is the NDAA's intent to ensure that our Nation's military is organized, trained, and equipped to deter our adversaries. Communist China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and any other nations or terrorist groups must know that they will never succeed in a war with the United States of America. The NDAA restores American deterrence by restoring lethality, defending Israel, securing our southern border, and providing oversight and accountability. To deter our adversaries, we must continue to modernize our military. The National Defense Authorization Act boosts innovation providing for the development and fielding of AI, quantum computing, and autonomous systems. The legislation also removes Communist China from our supply chain and prevents the Communist China spies from infiltrating our research institutions inside the United States of America. The NDAA bolsters Taiwan's defense and supports our Indo-Pacific allies as they work to deter our shared adversaries. This legislation also supports our ally Israel as they defend themselves from Hamas terrorists by expanding U.S.-Israel military exercises while also fully funding cooperative missile defense programs. Additionally, Madam Speaker, the Armed Services Committee included language that saves our taxpayers over $30 billion by cutting inefficient programs, obsolete weapons, and Pentagon bureaucracy. We live in the greatest free nation on Earth, and it is imperative that we support those who protect it. The fiscal year '25 National Defense Authorization Act is another step in that direction. Moving on to the resolutions recommending that the House of Representatives find United States Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with subpoenas duly issued by the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Madam Speaker, at the beginning of February, Special Counsel Robert Hur released his report on President Biden's mishandling of classified documents that were discovered in his home and office in 2022. On February 27, the Judiciary and Oversight Committees issued identical subpoenas compelling production of certain documents, including audio and video recordings of Special Counsel Hur's interviews with President Biden and his ghostwriter. These subpoenas were not complied with, Madam Speaker. The audio recordings were never produced. On May 16, the morning of the markup of the contempt report in the Judiciary and Oversight Committees, President Biden exerted executive privilege over those recordings. Madam Speaker, the audiotapes are the best evidence that the transcripts provided to the committee accurately reflect the true content. Additionally, President Biden waived any potential assertions of executive privilege when he released the transcript, and he has not set forth any valid basis for invoking executive privilege. Madam Speaker, the following things are true: The subpoenas were legally authorized. The subpoenas were not complied with. It is extremely clear: We wouldn't be here on the floor today discussing the matter if that was not the case. The American people deserve to know the truth. Even news outlets in this country, nearly a dozen, in fact, have sued for access to the recordings. Madam Speaker, Attorney General Garland has chosen not to comply with the subpoenas, and because of his choice, he must be found in contempt of Congress. Madam Speaker, I look forward to consideration of these important pieces of legislation and urge passage of this rule. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, the following things remain true: The subpoenas were legally authorized. The subpoenas were not complied with. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess), my friend and the chairman of the Rules Committee.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Langworthy), my friend.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, the following things are true: The subpoenas were legally authorized. The subpoenas were not complied with. I would remind you, Madam Speaker, that the words ``except for'' are even being used by my Democratic colleagues on the other side of the aisle. People don't have the option to comply partially with a subpoena. Nobody in this country does. I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Van Orden), my friend.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Wisconsin.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close. This week, we have the ability to advance significant legislation in the House of Representatives. The fiscal year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act fully authorizes our national defense and improves efficiency while eliminating wasteful spending and harmful programs. It strengthens our military and makes important steps to address the security threats America faces from our adversaries, including China, Iran, and foreign terrorist organizations. It improves our military readiness, provides robust support to our ally Israel, and supports law enforcement operations at our southern border. Critically, Madam Speaker, it focuses on improving the quality of life of our servicemembers and their families, who sacrifice so much to defend us. Madam Speaker, it provides a 19.5 percent pay raise for our junior enlisted servicemembers and a 4.5 percent pay raise for all other servicemembers. Additionally, Madam Speaker, the House has the responsibility to protect its Article I authority to conduct oversight and investigations. This week, Attorney General Garland has a choice: either comply with the lawfully issued subpoenas completely and turn over the tapes or be held in contempt. Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in voting ``yes'' on the previous question and ``yes'' on the rule.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and move the previous question on the resolution.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6983, a bipartisan resolution to rename the United States Post Office in Lakeland, Georgia, the Nell Patton Roquemore Post Office after my late constituent and former Lakeland postmaster, Nell Patten Roquemore. Ms. Nell Patten Roquemore was a model public servant and an active member of her community. Her unwavering commitment to the people of Lanier County was evident in her involvement in numerous local initiatives and organizations. Renaming the post office in honor of Ms. Roquemore is a small way to commemorate her legacy in Lanier County where, again, she served as the postmaster. I am proud to have all 13 Members of the Georgia delegation cosponsor this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to pass this legislation today.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to remove the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Bost) as cosponsor of H.R. 8182.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Arizona for yielding. Mr. Speaker, yesterday, we were joined in this Capitol by the family of Colonel Ralph Puckett. Colonel Puckett passed away at the age of 97, and in just a minute, I would like to read to you the official citation of his Medal of Honor. Before I read the Medal of Honor Citation, I want you to recognize this man, outside of being a warrior's warrior, was one of the most wonderful people who I have ever had the privilege to meet. That warrior's warrior, though, had a Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Stars, two Bronze Star Medals with combat V, and five Purple Hearts, as well as many other awards. What a blessing it was that we, as the United States of America, got to know Colonel Ralph Puckett. Mr. Speaker, the official citation: ``The President of United States of America, authorized by act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of Congress, the Medal of Honor to First Lieutenant Ralph Puckett, Jr., United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. ``First Lieutenant Ralph Puckett, Jr., distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving as the commander, 8th U.S. Army Ranger Company during the period of 25 November 1950 through 26 November 1950, in Korea. ``As his unit commenced a daylight attack on Hill 205, the enemy directed mortar, machine gun, and small arms fire against the advancing force. To obtain supporting fire, First Lieutenant Puckett mounted the closest tank, exposing himself to the deadly enemy fire. Leaping from the tank, he shouted words of encouragement to his men and began to lead the Rangers in the attack. ``Almost immediately, enemy fire threatened the success of the attack by pinning down one platoon. Leaving the safety of his position with full knowledge of the danger, First Lieutenant Puckett intentionally ran across an open area three times to draw enemy fire, thereby allowing the Rangers to locate and destroy the enemy positions and to seize Hill 205. ``During the night, the enemy launched a counterattack that lasted 4 hours. Over the course of the counterattack, the Rangers were inspired and motivated by the extraordinary leadership and courageous example exhibited by First Lieutenant Puckett. As a result, five human wave attacks by a battalion strength enemy element were repulsed. ``During the first attack, First Lieutenant Puckett was wounded by grenade fragments but refused evacuation and continually directed artillery support that decimated attacking enemy formations, repeatedly abandoned positions of relative safety to make his way from foxhole to foxhole to check the company's perimeter, and distribute ammunition amongst the Rangers. ``When the enemy launched a sixth attack, it became clear to First Lieutenant Puckett that the position was untenable due to the unavailability of supporting artillery fire. During this attack, two enemy mortar rounds landed in his foxhole, inflicting grievous wounds, which limited his mobility. ``Knowing his men were in a precarious situation, First Lieutenant Puckett commanded the Rangers to leave him behind and evacuate the area. Feeling a sense of duty to aid him, the Rangers refused the order and staged an effort to retrieve him from the foxhole while still under fire from the enemy. ``Ultimately, the Rangers succeeded in retrieving First Lieutenant Puckett, and they moved to the bottom of the hill, where First Lieutenant Puckett called for devastating artillery fire on the top of the enemy-controlled hill. ``First Lieutenant Puckett's extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.'' Mr. Speaker, may Ralph Puckett, Jr., lie in peace. Lord, thank You for allowing us the privilege of this man.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am not recorded because I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 79, and NAY on Roll Call No. 80.