The Biden Crises
Floor Speech
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, once again, an opportunity for bipartisan work on behalf of the American people has been blocked by the House Democrat leadership.
Madam Speaker, you might have seen last year, the Senate passed a bipartisan bill to help counter the rise of China, and we all recognize that this is the existential threat of our generation. The rise of China is something that should keep all of us up at night and we ought to be acting upon it.
And you might have also seen this year that the House was negotiating in good faith a companion bill to that Senate bill that passed in bipartisan fashion last year. But that was all before the rug was pulled out from underneath all of us by the House Democrat leadership just a few days ago. And it is as if the Democrat leadership here has forgotten how a bill becomes a law.
Now, look, these are the facts. There is not a mandate for radical legislation here. In the election cycle of 2020, what we got was a divided House. We got a divided Senate. The Senate is 50/50.
The Democrat majority in the House has the slimmest margin since World War II, but they seem to have forgotten that. So they are trying to act unilaterally. They are trying to bypass regular procedure. They are trying to skip over the regular committee process to have amendment and debate to legislation. And they are defying the opportunity for Republicans to work with our colleagues to address these great crises.
Madam Speaker, so we are here to remind the American people tonight-- my colleagues will be speaking over this hour--that there is a failure going on here and there are huge consequences to that for the American people. And of course, the failures are not limited to what is happening in this Chamber. It is the Biden administration itself. So we will be talking about these crises tonight.
My colleagues will come up one by one representing people from all across the country to talk about these great dilemmas that we are facing, unprecedented crises because of the policy choices and the actions of the White House and the Democrat leadership in Congress.
One of those that we will be talking about tonight is the passivity that we have seen in addressing the border crisis.
Madam Speaker, I was in my office for the last couple of hours, I got multiple calls from constituents back home who are deeply concerned about what they are watching play out on the television in the news every night. They are seeing the border completely overrun. They are seeing the number of illegal crossings at the border, which has risen, at a faster rate under President Biden than at any time in recent history. The result is truly catastrophic for the country.
We have an historic amount of illegal drugs coming across the border. That is just one aspect of this crisis that affects every American. Today, fentanyl overdoses--listen--fentanyl overdoses are now the leading cause of death for Americans age 18 to 45--the leading cause of death.
What are the Democrats doing to address this? Nothing. They are not allowing us to do anything about it because we can't move our legislation. So we are here to talk about this issue and to raise the alarm, to let the American people know what it is we are facing.
The Biden administration is asleep at the wheel when it comes to their number one job. The first job is to keep this country safe, to secure our borders, to maintain our sovereignty, to protect the American people. If you are an independent voter, it is becoming very clear that these Democrats cannot be trusted to fulfill even the most basic functions of government at any level.
Many public schools remain closed or they are operating part-time. Defunding and demonizing police is leading to crime in our streets, and many Americans can't even get their own tax returns or Social Security checks or veterans benefits because of the Biden administration's Federal Government staffing policies.
Democrats like to call themselves the party of competent government, but it is obviously clear to everyone who is paying attention that the last 12 months have shown us that unified Democrat control is just incompetent. If you put this simply, the Democrats have failed to do their job. I believe, we believe, we are certain, that there is going to be a reckoning for this in the election cycle before us.
Madam Speaker, I thank all my colleagues for being here tonight to discuss this disastrous House Democrat agenda and the Biden administration's shameful management of our government.
Madam Speaker, for the next hour you will hear about a number of crises.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Clyde).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend from Georgia. You are right, the American people are still waiting, and it appears that they will have to wait much longer if we are relying upon this White House.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Babin).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I am grateful for his recognition. The madness of this bill--it is a climate change bill that is masquerading as a China bill. It mentions coral reefs more times in the bill than the word China. Doesn't that say enough? I thank my friend for his comments.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Harshbarger).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman so much for her expertise, especially in pharmacology. This is something that everyone needs to recognize. This fentanyl problem is a problem that is avoidable.
I said in the opening that it is a leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45. We could stop this. This is a policy choice that is perpetuating this crisis, and it is absolutely outrageous that the White House and the Democrat leadership in this House will not address this issue.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Latta).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, those statistics are shocking indeed, and the fact that we had over 101,000 overdoses in a 12-month period and we hear nothing from the White House about this is just unforgivable.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Burchett).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for keeping me humble.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson), who is the Republican leader on the House Agriculture Committee.
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for that insight. He has been in Congress a while, and he has seen a lot of leadership come and go. But I will tell you, Madam Speaker, what we are having right now is causing these crises. Once again, these crises are created and perpetuated by bad policy choices, and it is hurting the American people.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. McKinley), who is a gentleman with a lot of seniority in Congress.
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, West Virginia is a long way from the southern border, but these drugs make it all the way across the country, and it affects everyone in one way or another. We all know people who have lost their lives because of overdose. I thank the gentleman for his insight.
Madam Speaker, I will go from West Virginia to the other side of the country.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Garcia), who served this country so valiantly.
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, these are harsh words about China. The gentleman is correct. It is the number one threat.
This bill that they are proposing and advancing right now--we call it the America concedes act--mentions climate change more than twice as often as the phrase ``national security'' in the bill. I think that says a lot.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Washington (Mrs. Rodgers), who is our Republican lead on the Energy and Commerce Committee.
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, that is so well-said and such a tragic story. Our prayers go out to that family. What a loss, and losses like that are all over the country. Fentanyl is weapons- grade, as Mrs. McMorris Rodgers said. It is a weapon of mass destruction.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Carter), who has a deep background in pharmacology.
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for his insight.
We were told, and we heard this morning in a briefing, that there are more than 140 derivative drugs that this poisonous fentanyl is being used with, and it is such a crisis.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Rose).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend so much for highlighting that. As Mr. Rose said, there is $10.3 billion in this bill for climate funding over the next 2 fiscal years. But there is also $2 billion in there for a climate program, and it is authorized every fiscal year with no sunsets--no sunsets.
I know that upsets my good friend, Mr. Grothman.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Grothman).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, what great points. I thank my friend for highlighting the problem. These energy policies from this White House are not only making fuel more expensive, more expensive for every American to put gasoline in their vehicle; it is also harming the environment, harming American interests, and benefitting China and India. What an incredible thing.
Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Owens).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for those comments. He is exactly right. If the Democrats are serious about countering China, they would have worked across the aisle. They would have worked in a bipartisan fashion. They would have sent some of our bipartisan legislation to a committee to work out real solutions.
But instead, they are trying to jam together this massive package full of partisan wish list items that they know the American people don't want, and we don't need, and we are not going to have any part of it.
Madam Speaker, I am happy to yield next to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for highlighting that critical issue. That is a big part of the border crisis that all these illegals are being brought to cities near you.
My hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana, has had dozens of busloads of people dropped off over the last year. They send me a notice from ICE because I demanded it. But this legislation is so important because everyone needs to know what is happening right under our noses.
Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for highlighting this terrible tragedy. It is just unimaginable the scope and the scale of this, and it goes on every day.
Madam Speaker, I am happy to yield to the gentlewoman from Iowa (Mrs. Miller-Meeks).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman so much for highlighting that critically important issue.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Keller).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, Pennsylvania has so much wisdom. We are going to bring you a one-two punch.
Madam Speaker, I am delighted next to yield to another gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce).
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Joyce for his comments. His insight and expertise are so valued and appreciated here.
This is a crisis just of unspeakable proportions. I mean, over 100,000 people lost their lives to overdoses just in a 12-month period. The White House is doing nothing about it. They seemingly are unconcerned about this, so we have to draw attention to it.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Cawthorn), the youngest Member of Congress maybe ever.
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Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Cawthorn and appreciate his insights.
Madam Speaker, what we have heard here tonight are Members from across the country, across the Republican Conference, who represent Americans all across this great land. They have expressed the people's deep concerns about the multiple crises that we face.
We have pointed out here and made the case and presented the evidence that these crises are the direct result of policy choices by the White House and the Democrat leaders in Congress. It is unconscionable. From the fentanyl crisis to the border crisis to the energy crisis to this mockery of a bill that they are trying to jam through Congress this week, the American people recognize this for what it is.
Madam Speaker, as I conclude, I would just make a couple of reminders about what we call the America concedes to China act.
This is a 2,900-page bill patched together in a back room somewhere with no regular order, no debate, no amendment process, no committee hearings, no input from the other side of the aisle at all. The Democrats went to the back room, put together a 2,900-page bill.
It has a price tag of $325 billion. It is filled with unvetted policies, partisan poison pills, and provisions totally unrelated to China. It doesn't do anything to address the threat from the Chinese Communist Party as advertised, and it does more harm than good.
Madam Speaker, we could be here all night. We could be here for multiple hours, highlighting all the crises. We don't have to because the American people can see this for themselves. They see China as the greatest threat to our national security and sovereignty and everything else of our lifetime. They see the border. They see the energy. They see the COVID crisis. Everything this White House touches has been a disaster.
Madam Speaker, it is time for a change. I think the American people will let their voices be heard in the next election cycle this fall. I am delighted that will happen. I would say, as I conclude here, it cannot happen soon enough.
Madam Speaker, I yield back.
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