Providing for Consideration of H.R. Equal Access to Green Cards for Legal Employment Act of Providing for Consideration of H.R. Veteran Service Recognition Act of and for Other Purposes
Floor Speech
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Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 1508 and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows: H. Res. 1508
Resolved, That upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the House the bill (H.R. 3648) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, to increase the per-country numerical limitation for family-sponsored immigrants, and for other purposes. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. The amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on the Judiciary now printed in the bill, modified by the amendment printed in part A of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; (2) the further amendment printed in part B of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, if offered by the Member designated in the report, which shall be in order without intervention of any point of order, shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question; and (3) one motion to recommit.
Sec. 2. Upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the House the bill (H.R. 7946) to provide benefits for noncitizen members of the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. The amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on the Judiciary now printed in the bill shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; (2) the further amendment printed in part C of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, if offered by the Member designated in the report, which shall be in order without intervention of any point of order, shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question; and (3) one motion to recommit.
Sec. 3. (a) At any time through the legislative day of Thursday, December 8, 2022, the Speaker may entertain motions offered by the Majority Leader or a designee that the House suspend the rules as though under clause 1 of rule XV with respect to multiple measures described in subsection (b), and the Chair shall put the question on any such motion without debate or intervening motion.
(b) A measure referred to in subsection (a) includes any measure that was the object of a motion to suspend the rules on the legislative day of December 5, 2022, December 6, 2022, December 7, 2022, or December 8, 2022, in the form as so offered, on which the yeas and nays were ordered and further proceedings postponed pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX.
(c) Upon the offering of a motion pursuant to subsection (a) concerning multiple measures, the ordering of the yeas and nays on postponed motions to suspend the rules with respect to such measures is vacated to the end that all such motions are considered as withdrawn.
Sec. 4. Notwithstanding clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on a vote by the yeas and nays on the question of adoption of a motion that the House suspend the rules offered on the legislative day of December 5, 2022 may be postponed through the legislative day of December 8, 2022.
Sec. 5.
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Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Mrs. Fischbach), 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. Speaker, yesterday the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 1508, providing for consideration of two measures: H.R. 3648 and H.R. 7946.
The rule provides for consideration of both H.R. 3648 and H.R. 7946 under structured rules with 1 hour of debate each equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary, self-executes a manager's amendment from Chairman Nadler for H.R. 3648, makes in order one amendment for each bill, and provides one motion to recommit for each measure.
The rule provides the majority leader or his designee the ability this week to en bloc requested roll call votes on suspensions. The rule also provides that roll call votes on suspension bills considered on December 5 may be postponed through December 8. Lastly, the rule provides same-day authority for any rule reported through the remainder of the 117th Congress.
Mr. Speaker, today we will consider two bills to reform our immigration system. Our current laws that govern employment-based and family-sponsored immigration visas desperately need updates. Estimates suggest that more than 880,000 people are in the green card backlog because of how broken our system is.
H.R. 3648, the Equal Access to Green Cards for Legal Employment, or EAGLE, Act of 2022 begins to address the extensive green card backlog.
The legislation eliminates per-country caps on employment-based visas and raises per-country caps for family-based visas to 15 percent.
The other bill up for consideration today is H.R. 7946, the Veteran Service Recognition Act. It improves naturalization for noncitizens who served in our country's military. It seems straightforward to me. If you have risked your life to protect and defend this country, you and your family deserve every opportunity to become U.S. citizens, if desired.
Now, while these two bills offer important reforms to our immigration system, I still personally believe there are also other urgent immigration issues that need to be addressed before the 117th Congress adjourns.
We need residency for Dreamers, these young people who have known no other home but the United States.
We must provide secure, stable immigration for agricultural workers who ensure food reaches our tables.
We should recapture existing visas that have gone unused so we can really make a sizable dent in reducing immigration backlogs.
And we need to regularize the status of long-term TPS holders who have been here for decades and are important members of our local communities.
Republicans always talk about issues within our immigration system, but so far none have come to the table with any meaningful, realistic, or productive solutions that would help fix it. They can't get to ``yes'' on anything. They demonize immigrants. They scapegoat immigrants, and rather than fix the challenges of our system, they use immigration as a wedge issue.
Democrats, on the other hand, want comprehensive immigration reform. We are ready, willing, and able to work with anyone who seriously wants to get something done. It is time for our colleagues across the aisle to join us in this effort.
These bills today are just the start, and my hope is that we are able to make more progress on this front before the end of the year.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support this rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Let me just say that here is the problem: We just heard from my colleague from Minnesota that Republicans are more interested in gimmicky amendments and sound bites as a way to try to get people to do nothing. I mean, they are the party of ``no'' when it comes to immigration.
My colleague says somehow that the Democrats are blocking attempts to ban people associated with communist or totalitarian parties, that somehow we want to admit them into this country. Well, here is the reality, and this is the fact, and people can check this: Current law says individuals associated with a communist or totalitarian party are already inadmissible under section 212(a)(3)(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. That is the current law.
At some point maybe my friends on the other side will want to help fix the immigration system, rather than just demagogue the issue over and over and over again.
This is an issue, by the way, that is important to our economic well- being. Our business community wants these bills passed in part because they are having a tough time trying to fill current jobs.
So we can demagogue the issue, and if that is what you want to do, fine; or you can actually legislate and get something done.
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Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, again, on traffickers and gun smugglers, and you name it, those things are already illegal, but whatever. It is not worth getting into it.
Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers on my side, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Let me remind all my colleagues that the Veteran Service Recognition Act is actually supported by the American Legion, one of our leading veterans' organizations in this country, but I guess that is not enough for some of my Republican colleagues again saying ``no'' to everything.
Mr. Speaker, the EAGLE Act and the Veteran Service Recognition Act provide necessary reforms that will improve our immigration system. I know so much more can be done--as I said before, we need to do more-- but these two bills are small steps that we can take now to help clear backlogs and ensure that those who not only have played by the rules, but have sacrificed in the service of our Nation can become citizens. They are important policies that should become law.
I read today that some of my friends on the other side of the aisle are urging their next leader--I don't know who it will be--to use the debt ceiling not only to cut Social Security and Medicare and a whole bunch of other programs that are vital, including nutrition programs, but they want to use it as leverage to go after immigrants to mess up our immigration system even more. What a rotten way to legislate, to use the debt ceiling as an excuse to try to derail government.
We already know what the Republicans are capable of doing. The last time they were in charge of the House and the Senate and the White House, they shut the government down and they left. That is their idea of responsible governing.
Well, we shouldn't be using the debt ceiling as leverage. We should actually be paying our bills that we have accumulated. If you don't like the spending--I didn't like Donald Trump's tax cut that benefited mostly wealthy people in this country; I nonetheless voted to increase the debt ceiling because we had accumulated all of that debt because of that terrible tax cut geared to the rich. It is the responsible thing to do. It really is kind of disturbing to hear some of the priorities of my Republican friends.
As I said before, their policy on immigration has been consistent. Demagogue, demagogue, demagogue. Fix nothing. They blame immigrants for everything. It is raining out today; they will blame immigrants. Having a fight with their spouse; well, it must be the fault of immigrants. Having a bad day; let's blame immigrants. That is their MO. That is what they have done, and it really is offensive. It betrays the highest values of this country.
The two bills before us are modest. There is much more we need to do. As I said, we need to help the Dreamers. We need to fix the issue for our TPS holders. We owe that to them.
Mr. Speaker, let me close by saying that we are going to spend the next few weeks legislating and delivering for the American people, and I urge some of my colleagues to join with us in getting things done, or they can simply do what they usually do and complain and complain and demagogue and demagogue.
Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule and on the previous question.
The previous question was ordered.
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