W. Steube

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I don't believe that American taxpayer dollars should be going to a country that supports terrorism. There are no assurances that, once the money is sent to Iraq, it is not going to be in the hands of Iranian proxies and terrorist organizations to then attack our own troops. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment that would prohibit Immigration and Customs Enforcement from sending funds to the Department of Veterans Affairs to process medical claims for illegal immigrants in ICE custody. This is a similar amendment to one that I led earlier this month on the funding bill for the VA. I was pleased that my amendment was included in that bill, and I urge my colleagues to support this amendment that would ensure that the VA focuses its resources on veterans, not illegal immigrants. Last December, I led a letter to the VA with 23 other Republican Members after seeing reports that ICE was using VA personnel to process medical claims for illegal immigrants in ICE custody. Thanks to the Biden administration's reckless policy on the border, we continue to see record numbers of illegal crossings. This will inevitably increase the burden on VA workers who should be fulfilling their duties to serve veterans instead. The VA exists to serve American veterans who risked their lives to protect our country. For far too long, the VA has fallen short on its mission: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise ``to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan'' by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's veterans. Veterans continue to experience unacceptable wait times in receiving medical care and disability benefits. Under the Biden administration, the disability claims backlog has exploded. As of last week, there are 273,307 outstanding disability claims that have been pending for more than 125 days. This is unacceptable, and the VA personnel should not lift a finger for illegal immigrants in ICE custody while thousands of veterans are forced to wait to receive the benefits they deserve. Mr. Chair, I ask my colleagues to support this amendment to ensure that VA personnel work for veterans, not illegal immigrants held by ICE. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, the money appropriated by this body and by Congress for the VA, for veterans and for veterans healthcare, should not be used to provide medical claims for illegal immigrants. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to meet at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. STEUBE. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment that would restrict radical gender ideology and pornographic content from entering the libraries and classrooms of schools operated by the Department of Defense. These morally corrupting materials have no place in an educational setting and could seriously harm the educational and psychological development of school children belonging to our servicemembers. Oftentimes, DOD schools are the only option that servicemembers have to educate their children, and we must ensure they have the resources to prepare them for success in their future careers and society. Yet, radical leftists desire to use schools as a tool to indoctrinate our children as soon as they enter kindergarten. I wish they were all just theoretical, but there exists a litany of examples of inappropriate and pornographic material that is available in DOD schools. Much of the material is far too graphic for me to read verbatim here on the House floor, but one example includes the book ``Gender Queer,'' which includes explicit imagery of explicit acts. In some DOD middle schools, young children are able to access a book called ``Middle School's a Drag,'' which is a story about a 12-year-old boy who starts a talent agency for child drag queen performers. In elementary school libraries, students can read many books about radical gender ideology, like ``When Aidan Became a Brother,'' which tells the story of a girl who believes she is a transgender boy. This material has no place in our schools, and Congress has the power to put a stop to it in DOD schools. The DOD school system serves over 66,000 children across the world, and we owe it to our servicemembers to provide their children with a topnotch education. That education should include lessons about reading, writing, and arithmetic, not explicit pornography and radical transgender propaganda. Madam Chair, I encourage my colleagues to join me in protecting the children entrusted to DOD schools by our men and women in uniform. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Madam Chair, these decisions are not best left to educators. In my opinion, it is best left to the parents to decide how they want to teach their kids. Our schools should be about teaching for the success of our children in mathematics and arithmetic and writing, not in gender ideology and pornography. What is unwelcome intrusion is teaching our kids pornography and transgender ideology. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. I just think that the purpose, especially having been a military servicemember and been on bases that have schools for our children, one of which was actually in Hawaii when I served at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii, the purpose of our DOD institutions and the education that our kids are getting there should not involve gender ideology, transgender propaganda, and radical sexualized ideology that just, quite frankly, shouldn't be taught to elementary school kids or middle school kids. Middle school children have access to some of these things that are very explicit pornography in these types of books. My belief is that our education system should be focused on teaching our children the types of things to make them successful as students, not sexual content. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I rise as the designee of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Self), and I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, VA money and the money that is appropriated by this body from taxpayers should go to the service of our veterans and not to millions of dollars in bonuses for senior bureaucrats. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chairman, I rise to urge support for Congressman Self's amendment, which will prohibit the funds from this bill to be used to give critical skills incentive, or CSI, bonuses to senior executives at the VA Central Office. Recently, the VA Office of Inspector General released a report that found that the VHA and the VBA improperly awarded over $10 million of these bonuses to senior bureaucrats in the VA Central Office. What is worse is that this was no technical glitch or error. This was a strategic move by the Under Secretaries of Health and Benefits to line the pockets of D.C. bureaucrats. Just this week, we held a hearing in the House Veterans' Affairs Committee where Secretary McDonough tried to explain their actions. However, their actions are inexcusable. Meanwhile, this is a slap in the face to rank-and-file VA employees, such as the nurse making sure a veteran has a quality visit to a VA hospital or the caseworker assisting a veteran with a claim, who will work their tails off day in and day out to serve our heroes. I served in the U.S. military, and one of the guiding principles is that leaders eat last. Clearly, in this instance, the bureaucrats at the VA ate first. This is why I have sponsored this amendment, which would prohibit the VA from using these bonuses to pad the pockets of their bureaucratic friends, and I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment that would prohibit the Department of Veterans Affairs from using any funds under this bill to process medical claims for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In December of last year, I led a letter to the VA, along with 23 other Republican Members, after receiving reports that the VA had contracted with ICE to process medical claims for illegal aliens in ICE custody. Considering the record numbers of illegal aliens streaming across our border, thanks to the Biden administration's reckless policies, we were concerned that the VA personnel were being taken away from their mission to serve our veterans. I am pleased that the underlying bill prohibits the VA from providing benefits directly to illegal aliens; however, my amendment is still necessary to ensure that the VA resources are focused solely on veterans since the current interagency arrangement allows the VA to provide this service to ICE. The VA exists to serve American veterans who risked their lives to protect our great country. For far too long, the VA has fallen short in its mission: ``To fulfill President Lincoln's promise `To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan' by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's veterans.'' Unfortunately, veterans continue to experience unacceptable wait times in receiving medical care and disability benefits. In particular, the VA's disability claim backlog has been a source of significant frustration in the veteran community. After several years under the Trump administration in which the VA disability claims backlog was consistently under 100,000 claims, the backlog has nearly tripled under the Biden administration to 278,000 as of last week. This is an abject failure, and our veterans deserve better from the VA. Despite the longstanding issues with its claims backlog and customer service issues, VA personnel are being tasked with serving claims for government-funded healthcare for illegal immigrants, not veterans. VA resources should be used solely for veterans and their survivors. Congress appropriates funds to the VA to provide services to our veterans, not illegal immigrants. Our veterans serve our country, and it is high time that our government starts serving them. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, the gentlewoman just admitted that the VA is administratively using resources to help illegal immigrants. I think the VA's mission, being a veteran myself, should be to support veterans, not illegal immigrants. In my first Congress, I served on the VA Committee, and you heard time and time again, despite adding more and more money to the VA, they can't deal with the backlogs. If they need more funds to do that, then why are we using resources that are at the VA to assist illegal immigrants and the processing at ICE? I think that is completely unconscionable, not only as a veteran and somebody that served this country, but I think if the people in my district certainly knew that money and resources that was appropriated to the VA are being used to help illegal immigrants through ICE, would be completely objectionable to everybody in my district. Mr. Chair, I ask all of the Members of this body to support this great amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. ``Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! ``You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hope and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world. ``Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely. ``But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory! ``I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory! ``Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.'' General Dwight Eisenhower.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Speaker, I stand in support of H.R. 5863, the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023. In a historic act, last week, a majority of the House of Representatives made clear that the House should act to provide tax relief to victims of natural disasters all across America. I thank every Member who stood with me in this fight, and I am thankful that this bill is finally being debated on the floor. On September 28, 2022, southwest Florida was ravaged by Hurricane Ian, one of the most devastating hurricanes to ever hit our Nation. NOAA ranks Hurricane Ian as the third most costly hurricane in United States history, killing nearly 150 people and causing billions of dollars in damages. For Floridians, we know that the recovery from Hurricane Ian is far from over. Despite experiencing numerous hurricanes yearly, Floridians are resilient. I have been working tirelessly on disaster relief legislation for Floridians to recover from various storms that have decimated so many communities around our State. The most recurring and pressing issue I hear in my district is that the sun coast is still waiting for Congress to do its job to provide much-needed relief. More than a year-and-a-half after landfall of Hurricane Ian, Congress has yet to provide disaster relief for those impacted financially by Ian. I have received thousands of letters, calls, and pleas for help from people in my district who have incurred tens of thousands of dollars in recovery expenses and are having a hard time getting ahead. On eight separate occasions since 2002, Congress has provided tax relief to victims of natural disasters. Since 2021, over 300 disasters across 47 States have been declared without Congress taking action. Additionally, wildfires across the Western United States and Maui have greatly impacted many Americans who have not received any relief from this body. Similarly, the victims of the East Palestine train derailment are facing the same situation. This bill helps everyday Americans and provides them the ability to deduct their expenses from a natural disaster from their taxes. This bill will not just aid Hurricane Ian victims. It will provide relief to the millions of Americans around the country who are victims of federally declared disasters. It will help victims of flooding in the Midwest. In the Pacific Northwest, victims of wildfires will get the relief they deserve. Those affected by severe winter storms in the Northeast will benefit from this tax deduction, as will our friends in Texas who have experienced damage from a wide variety of disasters, including winter storms, tornadoes, flooding, and fires. In short, this is not a problem that just affects Florida or California. This impacts millions of American families, and Congress must act to provide them relief. I am grateful to be supported by many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to lead the fight for Americans all across the country to get disaster relief. Disaster relief is not a Democratic problem or a Republican problem. It is something that all of us face. I give sincere thanks to Members and staff who have worked tirelessly on this bill. I give special thanks to California Congressmen Mike Thompson, Jimmy Panetta, and Doug LaMalfa, as well as Congresswoman Jill Tokuda of Hawaii, for their leadership on this effort. I also thank former Congressman Bill Johnson, who represented East Palestine, Ohio, and played an important role with this bill. I give special thanks to Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith for passing this bill out of the committee. The constituents of my district and the districts each of these colleagues represents are in need of help. Today, I urge swift passage of this bill on the House floor and urge expeditious consideration in the Senate so that Americans all across America can get much-needed relief.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I rise as the designee of the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Huizenga), and I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, this bill would provide transparency to who the Department is meeting with and who is influencing their decisions. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of an amendment originally sponsored by Congressman Huizenga that requires the Secretary of Energy to disclose certain stakeholder meetings with any entity that meets the following criteria: First, the entity must have ties to the People's Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party. Second, it must have produced studies regarding or has advocated for policies to limit, restrict, or ban the use of any type of energy. Third, the entity must have applied for or received Federal funds. In June of last year, nearly the same amendment was offered to Save Our Gas Stove Act, and it passed by a voice vote--because this is a solid policy prescription for a serious problem. The problem is that China-connected groups seem to have fast-pass access to the White House and our Federal agencies. The entities I am concerned with are not only tied to the Chinese Communist Party, but they are peddling anti-energy policies that raise costs on American families and businesses--like gas stove bans. In addition to access, they often receive your tax dollars as well, in the form of grant funding. Unfortunately, the Biden administration has not been transparent about who it is meeting with, let alone their plans to ban gas-powered appliances. Last year, a government watchdog group revealed a private meeting between the Secretary of Energy and one of these types of groups. We have since found this has not been an uncommon practice. Over the past few years, we have faced a litany of burdensome regulations from the Biden administration targeting appliances. As the underlying bill reflects, it is not just gas stoves--it is your washer, your dryer, your dishwasher, and much more. We have a major problem if groups with known connections to China are able to successfully influence the executive branch in ways that undermine cost-effective appliance options that meet Americans' daily needs. This amendment would inject critical transparency, curb the influence of the CCP-connected groups, and responsibly expose to America who has the ear of our regulators. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Speaker, in September 2022, my district in southwest Florida was devastated by Hurricane Ian. Totaling over $112 billion in damages, Ian was the third costliest hurricane in American history and the most expensive ever to hit Florida. Over a year later, my constituents are still working toward rebuilding their lives. I introduced the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, which is included in this bill, to deliver relief for American families in 45 States who were victims of federally declared disasters. This includes victims of wildfires, chemical spills, and hurricanes that have affected millions of Americans over the past several years. Mr. Speaker, we should pass this important tax relief for victims of natural disasters. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6918, the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act, introduced by Congresswoman Fischbach, and I thank her for introducing this important bill to push back against the Biden administration's shocking demonization of pregnancy resource centers. These centers provide loving care and resources for pregnant women and mothers of newborns who face trying times. Pregnancy resource centers provide a wide array of services, including free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, parenting and prenatal education, and lactation consultations. They give out free diapers, formula, and baby clothes for mothers of newborns. In my district, the Sarasota Medical Pregnancy Center does tremendous work as a lifeline for pregnant women in need. They lovingly care for these women who face challenging circumstances. There are trained medical professionals present who perform free ultrasounds and provide the care these women want and need. Unfortunately, Democrats continually seek to delegitimize these vital organizations simply because they provide an alternative to abortion. After the Dobbs decision was released, nearly 100 pregnancy crisis centers, including 4 in my home State of Florida, were attacked and vandalized by leftwing radical groups. Despite repeated pleas from Members of Congress, our Department of Justice largely refused to actively investigate this organized criminal activity. Now, the Biden administration is singling out pregnancy crisis centers to exclude them from eligibility under the TANF program, all because these centers encourage women to have their babies. It was a deliberate act by the Biden administration to appease radical pro-abortion activists by attacking pregnancy centers that provide so much to pregnant women. This bill simply ensures that the Biden administration cannot exclude these centers from TANF eligibility. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to support pregnancy resource centers, and I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this important legislation.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, our Nation's foster care system is overburdened and limited in its ability to adequately address the adversities, challenges, and traumas that children and families often confront in some of the most vulnerable times of their lives. This is the unfortunate reality--a status quo where good enough is not good enough. It is a status quo where children are forgotten and neglected, a status quo that leaves children to gather in the trauma that introduced them to the foster care system. The Administration for Children and Families has emboldened the status quo for far too long. Studies show that children placed in foster care are significantly more likely to face lifelong struggles that include homelessness, sex trafficking, incarceration, and post- traumatic stress disorder. To move past these challenges, we must introduce innovative solutions that address the complex needs of children and families involved in the foster care system. Our foster care system lacks innovation, but that is something that we can change. We must educate, support, and empower children in the foster care system to reach their full potential. To accomplish these goals, our foster care system needs interventional, trauma-informed programming molded to the unique circumstances of each child in the foster care system. I encourage my colleagues to recognize these unique challenges and help set foster care youth on a path to success.

Mr. STEUBE

Mr. STEUBE. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.