Extension of Continuing Appropriations and Other Matters Act, 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. MASSIE. Mr. Speaker, I will give the American people an overview of the debate that is happening here today. Why are there three Members of Congress controlling time on the floor? I thought there were only two parties. No. When it comes to spending, there is the ``uniparty.'' There is only one party today, and that is because Republicans and Democrats have united to kick the can down the road. They wanted to control all time for debate today, but my colleague, Mr. Roy from Texas, came down here and used a parliamentary procedure to claim time in opposition for 20 minutes so that people who take their oath to the Constitution most seriously, the people who are most concerned about debt, the people who want to represent the good folks back home, have a voice here today.

And what are we doing here today? We are going to pass a CR. We are going to kick the can down the road. Is that going to solve any problems? No. It creates another crisis next week. That is what they want. They want another crisis. They want to threaten you with the shutdown so they can get more spending. Is this a clean CR? We are told you can't add anything to it. No. It deals with student aid in this CR.

Are the American people concerned about student aid right now? Is that the most pressing issue to address in this spending bill? We have a crisis at the southern border. We could add one sentence to this bill that would help tremendously. Just say: None of the funds hereby appropriated may be used to disassemble border security erected by the States on our border. Put that one sentence in this continuing resolution. That would help tremendously.

I am worried that we are not going to prevail today, the third group who is debating here against the uniparty. If the other side prevails, what will happen? What will happen today, this evening after this passes? Will we stay here and work hard for another week to get the 12 bills done, the 12 separate appropriation bills? No. Guess what we are going do this evening? Everybody has already got their plane tickets. They are sending us home early. Congratulations. You moved the crisis down another week. Go home. Have a 4-day weekend.

We are going to let staff and a few Members in the Senate and a few Members in the House write this big bill, and then you can take it or leave it next week. Gone is any semblance of regular order from this process.

What we have is what the swamp always does, and I urge my colleagues to oppose this continuing resolution that does nothing but kick the can down the road.

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