Providing for Disposition of Senate Amendment to H.R. Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2026
Floor Speech
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Mrs. FISCHBACH. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 1142 and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows: H. Res. 1142
Resolved, That upon adoption of this resolution, the House shall be considered to have taken from the Speaker's table the bill (H.R. 7147) making further consolidated appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes, with the Senate amendment thereto, and to have concurred in the Senate amendment with an amendment consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 119-21.
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Mrs. FISCHBACH. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), 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
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Mrs. FISCHBACH. Mr. Speaker, we are here tonight to debate the rule providing for consideration of the Senate amendment for H.R. 7147, the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act of 2026.
The rule provides that the House shall be considered to have taken from the Speaker's table H.R. 7147, with the Senate amendment thereto, and to have concurred in the Senate amendment with an amendment consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 119-21.
Simply put, a vote for this rule is a vote to fund the entire Department of Homeland Security through May 22, 2026.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today because the American people are tired of half measures when it comes to their safety.
Last night, the Senate passed a funding deal that can only be described as an attempt to put a dead bolt on the front door while leaving the backdoor wide-open.
They want us to believe they are securing our homeland, yet their proposal dedicates exactly zero dollars toward our Border Patrol operations. In a world of evolving threats, my colleagues across the aisle believe that we can protect this Nation by halves, but the message from House Republicans is clear: We will not and cannot fund only half of our Homeland Security.
Security is not a buffet where you get to pick and choose which threats you acknowledge. House Republicans are aligned with the President on this. We will not accept a funding bill that does not support our homeland defenders, our ICE agents, and our Border Patrol.
If it is important to stop tragedies from happening at our airports and everyone can agree on that, then it is equally important to stop these events from happening at our borders and in our communities.
This week, the country felt the weight of Sheridan Gorman's death, a tragedy that is compounded by the bitter reality that it was entirely preventable and the result of Democrat policies that allow violent criminals to walk our streets.
This loss is a grim reminder that when policies prioritize a radical agenda and the protection of violent illegal aliens over the protection of American citizens, it is innocent families that pay the ultimate price.
We need to protect our citizens, and House Republicans will not vote for an even slightly open border. We will not leave portions of our homeland vulnerable while pretending the job is done. We know what happens when the border is treated as an afterthought.
Under the Biden administration, America faced a national security risk. More than 20 million illegal immigrants entered the United States, straining our communities to the breaking point. Customs and Border Patrol recorded more than 2 million illegal immigrants were able to cross into the Nation without any record of who they were. That is nearly double what they tracked during the prior decade.
Between fiscal year 2021 and fiscal year 2024, more than 388 illegal aliens on the terrorist watch list attempted to cross the border and, most alarming, at least 99 illegal aliens on that same watch list were allowed into our country. We saw members from one of the most notorious gangs in the world, MS-13, infiltrate our cities, leading to takeovers like we saw in Aurora, Colorado.
That is the result of Democrat hope-based border vulnerability strategies, but we do not operate on hope or whims. We operate on facts and action.
Under the Trump administration, we have seen what happens when we prioritize enforcement. In the last 10 months, zero illegal aliens have been released into the United States. We have proven that when the law is followed and the border is secured, our communities are safer and Americans are protected.
The transformation of Homeland Security is further proof that the U.S. Coast Guard seized nearly 510,000 pounds of cocaine in fiscal year 2025, a 200 percent increase compared to the annual average in previous years, and yet, despite this clear progress, Democrats are choosing to block DHS funding leading to this shutdown.
They would rather see the entire Department shuttered than to see our borders secure. This is a simple, commonsense, 60-day, 8-week clean CR so we can properly pay our homeland defenders and continue the discussions.
It secures the border by fully funding the paychecks and resources that we need. It protects our airports. It supports the President's decisive leadership in allocating TSA funds. It keeps FEMA ready to ensure our disaster response is not a casualty of the Democrat shutdown, and it guarantees the men and women on the front lines are paid for the critical work they do.
Mr. Speaker, the Senate bill is a nonstarter because it treats national security as an optional expense. House Republicans will not fund a half-baked idea that leaves our borders open and our communities at risk.
Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues on the other side of the aisle and the other side of the rotunda to stop holding our security hostage. Join me in supporting this commonsense, 8-week CR and funding critical needs.
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Mrs. FISCHBACH. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from the other side of the aisle can yell and swear all he wants. The reality is this CR is a commonsense solution to fund critical needs and to continue the discussion.
Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell you what is true about what Mr. McGovern said. It is true that last night, after midnight, the Republican majority leader introduced a piece of legislation on the floor of the Senate. It is true that no Republican Senator objected to that. I can tell you, I am very disappointed in the Republican leader and in the Republican Party over there for not objecting to it.
I want to read, for the American citizens, what is written in the bill because I want you to understand why we cannot accept, and it is not in your best interest as American citizens for us to accept, the language that the Senate sent over here. While this is boring, I do think the words on the sheet of paper matter, and you need to understand the consequences of accepting the language.
Section 4, Explanatory Statement: ``The explanatory statement regarding this act, printed in the House section of the Congressional Record on or about January 22, 2026, and submitted by the chair of the Committee on Appropriations of the House, shall have the same effect with respect to the allocation of funds and implementation of this act as if it were a joint explanatory statement of a committee of conference, except that all contents printed under the headings `U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement' ''--that is what they want you to think it is about, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement--``and `Border Security Operations' under the heading `U.S. Customs and Border Protection' shall have no force or effect for purpose of this act, and amounts specified in the `Final Bill' column under the subheading `Border Security Operations' ''--not just ICE, but border security operations--``and under the heading `U.S. Customs and Border Protection' and under the heading `U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement' in the `Department of Homeland Security Act, 2026' table shall all be $0.''
That is what you are demanding, that we zero out Customs and Border Protection so that the border can be open the way you want it to be open, the way you did it under Joe Biden.
Mr. Speaker, I am disappointed in the Republican leader, and I am disappointed in the Republicans in the Senate for not objecting to this madness.
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Mrs. FISCHBACH. Foxx), the chair of the Rules Committee.
Mr. MOORE of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I am listening to the other side of the aisle right now, and I want you to know what you are hearing right now is desperation.
It is desperation because they are this close to their ultimate objective, which is defunding ICE, CBP, and HSI, which, by the way, they are going after the 300,000 unaccompanied minors you all let into this country that no one can find. That is what is going on here right now.
This bill that the Senate has passed, I am going to call it Hakeem's dream. That is what this bill is. It is Hakeem's dream, but it is America's nightmare. That is what this bill is.
This Chamber here on this side of the aisle, we are not only saying no to that, we are saying hell no. We are not going to pass this.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives has stood up and said we are not going to take this anymore. We are going to fund ICE, CBP, and HSI, and we are going to put a stop to the madness that has been going on in this country for far too long. It is time to make America safe again.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to close this debate with a clear and unwavering message to my colleagues across the aisle and across the rotunda: you cannot fund only half of our Homeland Security.
There has been a lot of loud voices from the other side of the aisle. I think they believe the louder they speak the more the American people will believe them. The American people do understand that this CR makes sense. It funds everything, people get paid, and it allows more time to continue the discussion. This is the commonsense thing to do.
The proposal sent to us by the Senate in the dead of the night is not a solution. It is a Swiss cheese funding bill defined by its holes and deficiencies. While we all agree on the importance of protecting our airports, the Senate plan operates on the hope that we can secure our borders by using supplemental funds meant for construction and technology to cover basic operational needs.
The current bill does not just ignore the border. It actively harms our border security infrastructure. It keeps our cybersecurity experts at CISA furloughed while adversaries target our networks. It leaves FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund depleted and keeps our Coast Guard crews from the training they need to operate in hazardous conditions.
Our 60-day CR ensures that over 100,000 DHS employees receive paychecks. It ensures that investigations into drug trafficking, human smuggling, and child exploitation can commence.
It ensures that our BioWatch systems remain active in over 30 major cities to warn us of bioterrorism attacks.
The American people are tired of games. They do not want half- security or partial funding. They want a government that protects them at the airport, at the hospital, and at the border.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to stop holding our homeland defenders hostage to push a radical open-border agenda. Support this rule, support this CR, and let's get back to the business of securing the entire United States.
The material previously referred to by Mr. McGovern is as follows: An amendment to H. Res. 1142 Offered by Mr. McGovern of Massachusetts
Strike ``with an amendment consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 119-21''.
At the end, insert the following:
``Sec. 2. The Speaker is directed to sign the enrolled bill no later than one calendar day after adoption, and the Clerk is directed to present the bill to the President immediately upon signature by the Senate President.''.
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