Sylvester Turner

Mr. TURNER of Texas

Mr. TURNER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise to share the story of a Federal scientist in his own words who was fired by President Trump and Elon Musk: I have a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering. I was hired by the National Cancer Institute and was performing 4- to 5- month rotations to provide my scientific expertise and skill sets to numerous offices. I assessed the scientific progress of grants that fund cancer research. Please protect these agencies. This scientist overseeing scientific progress of grants that fund cancer research was fired, and the very grants have been frozen. The University of Houston in my district has had countless grants frozen leading to uncertainty and confusion about the future of the research. According to the National Cancer Institute, over 40 percent of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Firing cancer scientists and freezing cancer research is shortsighted and irresponsible.

Mr. TURNER of Texas

Mr. TURNER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, this past weekend was Super Bowl weekend, and of course, I was in my district in Houston, Texas. I went back to get prepared to go to several events in reference to the Super Bowl. I thought the number one question that I was going to be asked was who I favor since the Houston Texans were defeated by Kansas City on their way to the Super Bowl. However, all this week, Mr. Speaker, the question that kept coming back to me was: Congressman Turner, what is happening in D.C., and what is this about our personal information being in the hands of someone else? From one event to the next, I was stopped and got these questions over and over again. At the Super Bowl party, I guess you could say, again I thought people would be focused on Kansas City or Philadelphia, but when I arrived, people would come up to me and say: What is this that I am hearing about my personal information possibly being in the hands of someone else? That is what I had to deal with this entire weekend. It is an issue that we simply cannot ignore, that someone--let's say, in this case, Elon Musk and his team of engineers--would go to the United States Treasury Department and literally take it over and have access to people's Social Security information, Medicare information, Medicaid information, taxpayer information, and the list goes on and on. This is a payment system that literally processes about $6 trillion on an annual basis. When I came to this Congress as a new Member, that was not one of the issues that I thought I would be facing in the first month of being here in this 119th Congress, but it is an issue that I have had to deal with now over and over again. Then, the next question that came to me, Mr. Speaker, was: All right, Congressman Turner, you are there, so what are you all doing to protect our information? What is the next step? What is Congress intending to do? That was a difficult question to answer. What I did say to people is that many of us are not in agreement with what has taken place over the last few weeks. We did not approve someone coming in, taking over the U.S. Treasury Department, and obtaining your private, confidential information without your consent, so we are standing up and speaking against it. Let me point out, which I think this is important, the questions that came to me did not just come from Democrats. The questions were also coming to me from Republicans, moms and dads, people who care about their information when they have heard so much about cybersecurity threats and information being stolen. That is what came to me. For 8 years, Mr. Speaker, I was the mayor of the city of Houston, a nonpartisan position. As the mayor of a city, potholes are neither Democratic nor Republican. When it rains, it doesn't just fall on Democratic neighborhoods; it will fall on Republican neighborhoods. I have had a reputation of trying to call it as I see it, call a ball a ball and a strike a strike. In this case, when I was at home, I heard from people from all walks of life and both sides of the aisle concerned about where their information was going, who had it, and whether or not the people who now have it were sufficiently vetted. I could not say to them that the persons who have their information, who are going through their information, and who are using it for whatever purpose, that they have been sufficiently vetted. I can't respond to that. Literally, I can't respond to it because it was an issue that has not been debated on the House floor, but it is an issue that is important to moms and dads; people who are on Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid; and for taxpayers who don't like sharing their information with just anyone. I have been a lawyer for 40-plus years. During that time, there are certain things that are just very important for the average person, and their information is that important. My mom did not graduate from high school, and I don't say that in a negative sense because she and my dad raised nine kids and, I think, did an outstanding job. My mom, after my dad died, guarded her information very carefully, and a lot of things she would not even share with her kids. I was a lawyer in the family, but she was always concerned about who had access to her banking accounts, Social Security number, and things of that nature. Right now in America, whether you come from Houston, Texas, California, Massachusetts, or Georgia, people are concerned about who has their personal information. If this issue is so important, then this is an issue that should be debated in the people's House by those of us who are closest to the people who we represent. That is why I am a strong supporter of the Taxpayer Data Protection Act. Mr. Speaker, when I came here during orientation and in the days since, I was reminded that this Chamber is the people's House. We represent the folks who are closest to the ones who we speak for and should represent. Now, I am not one who wants to stand up and demonize Elon Musk. I am not that person. However, when Elon Musk steps into this role with his team that very few of us have ever met, then he steps into the arena where we are the ones with the responsibility of safeguarding the American people's interests. Elon Musk and his team should not carry any more weight than those of us who have been duly elected and represent the people in our districts, in this country. This is an issue, Mr. Speaker, that should be fully debated in this Chamber in the people's House. It is simply that important. That is why we must immediately debate and pass the Taxpayer Data Protection Act, which will protect our Nation's payment system and give hardworking Americans some sense of security. I close by saying this: This is not a partisan issue. It is the people's interest. Throughout all of last year, we talked about what the people wanted, the real issues that affected real people. Nothing hits closer to them than their medical bills, their Social Security information, and their taxpayer information. People should have a right to know who holds that information, what they are doing with it, and how it is being used. Congress has a responsibility here, Mr. Speaker. We cannot abdicate our role. If we are not allowed to debate it and decide what is in the people's interest, then we may as well go home and allow Elon Musk and his team to sit in these chairs and make the decisions on what happens in our future. That is something that I find unacceptable, so I am asking for Congress to debate this particular bill, the Taxpayer Data Protection Act, and allow the people's House to decide who should hold their information, who should have access to it, and how that information should be used. If we fail to do that as Congress, then we have abdicated our role to speak and represent the people. Regardless of what district, regardless of what city or State, I hope we will not abdicate our role, be we Democrat or Republican. The people need to know that we stand up and represent their interests.

Mr. TURNER of Texas

Mr. TURNER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to stand in unwavering support of our Nation's Federal employees, many of whom live and work across the Texas 18th Congressional District. As a proud member of the Congressional Labor Caucus, I am here to say loud and clear: America needs its Federal workforce, and we will not sit by while their jobs, their rights, and their livelihoods are under attack. Federal employees ensure the safety and well-being of every American, and these efforts to reduce Federal workers will only bring them harm. Thousands of Federal workers in Texas' 18th Congressional District serve vital roles, including healthcare, transportation and safety, Social Security, and much more. To every dedicated Federal employee, our message is clear. We have their back. We will fight in Congress to protect their rights, their jobs, and their ability to serve the American people. Their work does not go unrecognized. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to stand against this calculated attack on Federal workers and the values of public service.

Mr. TURNER of Texas

Mr. TURNER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on September 24, 1965, President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed an executive order which ensures equal opportunity for people of color and women; prohibits Federal contractors from engaging in discriminatory practices in recruitment, hiring, training, and discriminating based on race, sex, religion, or national origin. This executive order was signed during the period of transformative progress, 1 year after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a few months after the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and 2 years after Dr. Martin Luther King's iconic ``I Have a Dream'' speech. Yet, just 2 days after we honored the legacy of Dr. King this week, President Trump, with the mere stroke of a pen, seeks to undo what has been in place for nearly 60 years. His actions aim to undermine the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and threaten the livelihood of thousands of Federal workers and their families. Mr. Speaker, I could not sleep last night, and these executive orders by the President are a direct attack. We must stand up and speak.

Mr. TURNER of Texas

Mr. TURNER of Texas. Mr. Speaker, during my 8 years as Mayor of Houston, I faced seven federally declared disasters. I thank this House for your support. Texas has experienced more billion-dollar disasters since 1980 than any other State in the Union. Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and Winter Storm Uri in February of 2021 cost us billions. I am grateful to the White House under the leadership, at the time, of Presidents Trump and Biden and bipartisan Members of Congress for the billions of dollars sent to Houston and Texas without any preconditions. Disasters affect Democrats and Republicans and every socioeconomic group. People lose their homes, their furniture, their cars, their pets, and many lose their lives. These disasters affect them physically and mentally. For many families with limited means, and especially those with children, they do not know how they are going to move forward. The support of Congress gives them hope, resources, lightens their burden, and renews their faith their country will be there for them in their moment of need. Mr. Speaker, I pray we will be there for the people of California as Congress was there for Texas without condition and for others that may face disasters in the future. Mr. Speaker, that is who we are.