[Pages H998-H1004]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RAISING A QUESTION OF THE PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE

  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to a question of the privileges of 
the House and offer the resolution that was previously noticed.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Murphy). The Clerk will report the 
resolution.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 189

       Whereas on March 4, 2025, during the joint session of 
     Congress convened pursuant to House Concurrent Resolution 11, 
     the President of the United States, speaking at the 
     invitation of the House and Senate, had his remarks 
     interrupted by the Representative from Texas, Mr. Green;
       Whereas the conduct of the Representative from Texas 
     disrupted the proceedings of the joint address and was a 
     breach of proper conduct; and
       Whereas after numerous disruptions, the Representative from 
     Texas had to be removed from the chamber by the Sergeant at 
     Arms: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That--
       (1) Representative Al Green be censured;
       (2) Representative Al Green forthwith present himself in 
     the well of the House of Representatives for the 
     pronouncement of censure; and
       (3) Representative Al Green be censured with the public 
     reading of this resolution by the Speaker.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The resolution qualifies.


                            Motion to Table

  Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The clerk will report the motion.
  The Clerk read the motion as follows:

       Ms. Clark of Massachusetts moves to lay the resolution on 
     the table.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to table.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the noes appeared to have it.
  Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas 
and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. This is a 5-minute vote.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 209, 
nays 211, answered ``present'' 1, not voting 11, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 60]

                               YEAS--209

     Adams
     Aguilar
     Amo
     Ansari
     Auchincloss
     Balint
     Barragan
     Beatty
     Bell
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop
     Bonamici
     Boyle (PA)
     Brown
     Brownley
     Budzinski
     Bynum
     Carbajal
     Carson
     Carter (LA)
     Casar
     Case
     Casten
     Castor (FL)
     Castro (TX)
     Cherfilus-McCormick
     Chu
     Cisneros
     Clark (MA)
     Clarke (NY)
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Conaway
     Connolly
     Correa
     Costa
     Courtney
     Craig
     Crockett
     Crow
     Cuellar
     Davids (KS)
     Davis (IL)
     Davis (NC)
     Dean (PA)
     DeGette
     DeLauro
     DelBene
     Deluzio
     DeSaulnier
     Dexter
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Elfreth
     Escobar
     Espaillat
     Evans (PA)
     Fields
     Figures
     Fletcher
     Foster
     Foushee
     Frankel, Lois
     Friedman
     Frost
     Garamendi
     Garcia (CA)
     Garcia (IL)
     Garcia (TX)
     Gillen
     Golden (ME)
     Goldman (NY)
     Gomez
     Gonzalez, V.
     Goodlander
     Gottheimer
     Gray
     Harder (CA)
     Hayes
     Himes
     Horsford
     Houlahan
     Hoyer
     Hoyle (OR)

[[Page H999]]


     Huffman
     Ivey
     Jackson (IL)
     Jacobs
     Jayapal
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson (TX)
     Kamlager-Dove
     Kaptur
     Keating
     Kelly (IL)
     Kennedy (NY)
     Khanna
     Krishnamoorthi
     Landsman
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Latimer
     Lee (NV)
     Lee (PA)
     Leger Fernandez
     Levin
     Liccardo
     Lieu
     Lofgren
     Lynch
     Magaziner
     Mannion
     Matsui
     McBath
     McBride
     McClain Delaney
     McClellan
     McCollum
     McDonald Rivet
     McGarvey
     McGovern
     McIver
     Meeks
     Menendez
     Meng
     Mfume
     Min
     Moore (WI)
     Morelle
     Morrison
     Moskowitz
     Moulton
     Mrvan
     Nadler
     Neal
     Neguse
     Norcross
     Ocasio-Cortez
     Olszewski
     Omar
     Pallone
     Panetta
     Pappas
     Pelosi
     Perez
     Peters
     Pingree
     Pocan
     Pou
     Pressley
     Quigley
     Ramirez
     Randall
     Raskin
     Riley (NY)
     Rivas
     Ross
     Ruiz
     Ryan
     Salinas
     Sanchez
     Scanlon
     Schakowsky
     Schneider
     Scholten
     Schrier
     Scott (VA)
     Scott, David
     Sewell
     Sherman
     Simon
     Smith (WA)
     Sorensen
     Soto
     Stansbury
     Stanton
     Stevens
     Strickland
     Subramanyam
     Suozzi
     Swalwell
     Sykes
     Takano
     Thanedar
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Titus
     Tlaib
     Tokuda
     Tonko
     Torres (CA)
     Torres (NY)
     Trahan
     Tran
     Underwood
     Vargas
     Vasquez
     Veasey
     Velazquez
     Vindman
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watson Coleman
     Whitesides
     Williams (GA)
     Wilson (FL)

                               NAYS--211

     Aderholt
     Alford
     Allen
     Amodei (NV)
     Arrington
     Babin
     Bacon
     Baird
     Balderson
     Barr
     Barrett
     Baumgartner
     Bean (FL)
     Bentz
     Bergman
     Bice
     Biggs (AZ)
     Biggs (SC)
     Bilirakis
     Boebert
     Bost
     Brecheen
     Bresnahan
     Burchett
     Burlison
     Calvert
     Cammack
     Carey
     Carter (GA)
     Carter (TX)
     Ciscomani
     Cline
     Cloud
     Clyde
     Collins
     Comer
     Crane
     Crank
     Crawford
     Crenshaw
     Davidson
     De La Cruz
     DesJarlais
     Donalds
     Downing
     Dunn (FL)
     Edwards
     Ellzey
     Emmer
     Estes
     Evans (CO)
     Ezell
     Fallon
     Fedorchak
     Feenstra
     Finstad
     Fischbach
     Fitzgerald
     Fitzpatrick
     Fleischmann
     Flood
     Fong
     Foxx
     Franklin, Scott
     Fry
     Fulcher
     Garbarino
     Gill (TX)
     Gimenez
     Goldman (TX)
     Gooden
     Gosar
     Graves
     Green (TN)
     Greene (GA)
     Griffith
     Grothman
     Guest
     Guthrie
     Hageman
     Hamadeh (AZ)
     Haridopolos
     Harrigan
     Harris (MD)
     Harris (NC)
     Harshbarger
     Hern (OK)
     Higgins (LA)
     Hill (AR)
     Hinson
     Houchin
     Hudson
     Huizenga
     Hunt
     Hurd (CO)
     Issa
     Jack
     Jackson (TX)
     James
     Johnson (LA)
     Johnson (SD)
     Jordan
     Joyce (OH)
     Joyce (PA)
     Kean
     Kelly (MS)
     Kelly (PA)
     Kennedy (UT)
     Kiggans (VA)
     Kiley (CA)
     Kim
     Knott
     Kustoff
     LaHood
     LaLota
     LaMalfa
     Langworthy
     Latta
     Lawler
     Lee (FL)
     Letlow
     Loudermilk
     Lucas
     Luna
     Luttrell
     Mace
     Mackenzie
     Malliotakis
     Maloy
     Mann
     Massie
     Mast
     McCaul
     McClain
     McClintock
     McCormick
     McDowell
     McGuire
     Messmer
     Miller (IL)
     Miller (OH)
     Miller (WV)
     Miller-Meeks
     Mills
     Moolenaar
     Moore (AL)
     Moore (NC)
     Moore (UT)
     Moore (WV)
     Moran
     Murphy
     Nehls
     Newhouse
     Norman
     Nunn (IA)
     Obernolte
     Ogles
     Onder
     Owens
     Palmer
     Perry
     Pfluger
     Reschenthaler
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rouzer
     Roy
     Rulli
     Rutherford
     Salazar
     Scalise
     Schmidt
     Schweikert
     Scott, Austin
     Self
     Sessions
     Shreve
     Simpson
     Smith (MO)
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smucker
     Spartz
     Stauber
     Stefanik
     Steil
     Steube
     Strong
     Stutzman
     Taylor
     Tenney
     Thompson (PA)
     Tiffany
     Timmons
     Turner (OH)
     Valadao
     Van Drew
     Van Duyne
     Van Orden
     Wagner
     Walberg
     Weber (TX)
     Webster (FL)
     Westerman
     Wied
     Williams (TX)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Womack
     Yakym
     Zinke

                        ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--1

       
     Green, Al (TX)
       

                             NOT VOTING--11

     Begich
     Buchanan
     Cole
     Diaz-Balart
     Gonzales, Tony
     Grijalva
     Meuser
     Mullin
     Pettersen
     Rose
     Sherrill


                Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (during the vote). There are 2 minutes 
remaining.

                              {time}  1652

  So the motion to table was rejected.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
  Stated against:
  Mr. BEGICH. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been 
present, I would have voted NAY on Roll Call No. 60.
  Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted NAY on 
Roll Call No. 60.

                              {time}  1700

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. DesJarlais). Pursuant to clause 2 of 
rule IX, the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Newhouse) and the gentleman 
from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Washington.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today for a very serious issue that I think 
troubles and disturbs every Member of the House of Representatives on 
both sides of the aisle.
  Mr. Speaker, decorum, order, and respect are the foundations for the 
way that we conduct business in this Chamber, in this institution.
  Respect for the institution is paramount. Respect for each other and 
respect for the responsibility that each one of us has been given and 
has been tasked with and who has the responsibility to the American 
people are the building blocks and the most important facets of our 
system that truly separate us, the United States of America, from the 
rest of the world.
  During the President's address just last night to a joint session of 
Congress, Mr. Speaker, those principles were violated. The gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Green) performed one of most shameful acts that I have 
ever seen on this floor.
  As an advocate for bipartisan problem-solving and for working across 
the aisle as hard as possible to come up with solutions for the people 
whom I represent and for the people whom every single one of us 
represents, I was deeply disappointed to see the behavior that we all 
saw and that the world saw unfold in this Chamber.
  I thank my Republican colleagues and certainly House leadership, 
particularly Mr. Crane and Mr. Nehls, for helping elevate the 
Conference's concern on this very, very important matter.
  Mr. Speaker, we must maintain a standard in the House of 
Representatives, and any Member's refusal to adhere to the Speaker's 
direction to cease such behavior, regardless of their political party 
and regardless of who is at the lectern giving a speech, has to and 
must continue to be reprimanded. We cannot afford to let it go by.
  Mr. Speaker, we can do better. Mr. Speaker, we must do better for 
ourselves, for the institution, and for the people who sent us here. 
Checking our emotion, checking our energy, and checking our rhetoric 
and prioritizing decency between each other sends the message not only 
to our colleagues but to the rest of the country and the rest of the 
world that we are working for the people and not against each other.
  With those brief comments, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of outrage in this Chamber about an 
interruption last night. Republicans are furious--furious--that someone 
dared to speak up.
  Do you know what, Mr. Speaker?
  I agree that there was a violation of the dignity and decorum of this 
Chamber, and it came from the podium where Donald Trump was standing. 
He gave one of the most bitter, angry, and divisive speeches ever 
delivered in this room.
  He offered no vision and no solutions, just grievance after grievance 
after grievance. It was 90 minutes of pure propaganda. It made me sick.
  He offered zero ideas to fix the egg shortage, zero solutions for 
inflation, zero plans to lower rent, zero about prescription drugs, and 
zero about caring for our veterans--he didn't even mention them--and 
zero about the wildfires devastating South Carolina.
  Mr. Speaker, do you know what Donald Trump did mention 13 times? Joe 
Biden. That is because he is obsessed with the past, and he is obsessed 
with himself.
  Republicans jump into action after someone has the guts to stand up 
and call BS. It has been less than 24 hours, and here they are on the 
floor with an emergency censure to soothe Donald Trump's fragile ego. I 
have never seen them leap into action so fast in my life. It was 
overnight.
  Meanwhile, their own voters are getting hurt by this administration, 
and it is radio silence. They can't even be

[[Page H1000]]

bothered to lift a finger or do a townhall.
  Mr. Speaker, where is the outrage over Trump wanting to cut 80,000 
jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs?
  Where is the condemnation for Trump firing 6,000 veterans with no 
justification?
  Where is the anger for Trump firing scientists who are working to fix 
the egg shortage by fighting the bird flu?
  Moreover, where is the immediate action when the people who keep 
Ebola out of the country are fired or the people who secure our nuclear 
weapons are fired?
  Where is the outrage?
  Republicans can't lift a finger about any of those things, but they 
sprint to the floor to censure Al Green because he hurt Trump's 
feelings. It is pathetic, Mr. Speaker.
  Now, look, we know what this is all about. Republicans don't work for 
America. They don't work for the people. They don't work for veterans, 
and they don't work for the teachers or the nurses or the firefighters 
or factory workers or the waitresses or the farmers.
  They work for Trump. They work for Trump, for their billionaire 
donors, and for the greedy corporations who write their campaign 
checks. Mr. Speaker, if you ever needed proof, then look no further 
than what is happening right now.
  They are desperate--desperate--to distract from their own failings. 
They are desperate to distract from their betrayal of the middle class. 
They are so desperate that they are running from their own voters and 
censuring people who hurt Trump's feelings.
  Give me a break.
  Al Green is not the one trying to gut Medicaid; Trump is. Al Green is 
not the one trying to gut veterans' benefits; Trump is. Al Green is not 
the one cozying up to dictators and screwing over our allies; Trump is.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to say that I respect 
Mr. McGovern's opinion and his viewpoints. They may conflict with mine 
on many occasions, but he has the absolute right to express them on 
this floor, and we need to continue that tradition. However, this is 
not about the President. This is not about President Trump.
  This is about how we, as Members of the House of Representatives, 
conduct ourselves while we are doing business on the House floor. This 
is about how we treat each other. It is about how we treat each other, 
whether with respect or not. It is so important, especially when the 
eyes of the world are focused right here in this very room.
  In my short time in Congress, which is just about a decade now, I 
have never ever seen a Member of the House, by the direction of the 
Speaker, escorted from the premises by the Sergeant at Arms. That is a 
first.
  Maybe, Mr. Speaker, you know of the last time it happened. It has 
been a long time.
  I am very disappointed and ashamed of the fact, and this is not 
personal to Mr. Green, who is a very amiable fellow, but we must, as 
Members of this institution, leave our rhetoric, calm our energy, and 
make sure our emotions do not take over and conduct ourselves in a way 
that all of us, not just here in this room but across the country, can 
be proud of because we truly are on display to the rest of the world.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from California (Mr. LaMalfa).
  Mr. LaMALFA. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Newhouse for leading this. It 
is a regrettable situation we are in. It is not one we enjoy at all.
  I have been disappointed over the years at outbursts that come from 
this Chamber at whoever the President is. I know people on my side of 
the aisle have done it. In the case I am thinking of, that person later 
regretted it and apologized for it. That person understands that we 
have to have decorum in this place.
  It is hard to contain emotions, perhaps, but we are in the business 
to be leaders. We are in a business that we are supposed to be able to 
contain our emotions and contain ourselves in such a way that we are 
good leaders and good examples for the American people; that they can 
be proud of us and what we are doing. They may disagree with us on our 
policies, and they may disagree strenuously.
  I consider Mr. Green a friend, at least an acquaintance. We don't 
hang out a lot or are on the same committees, but we chat together in 
the hallways. I like him, and I hope he likes me too. We have probably 
extremely different views on some issues, and I know he expresses 
himself in some pretty strong views and emotions, as well. That is fine 
when we are doing that in debate and we are doing that in the proper 
format here.
  However, decorum in this hallowed Chamber and for what this has stood 
for for well over 200 years requires us to be able to operate much 
better than that.
  I wasn't so much mad last night as I sat just a few chairs over from 
Mr. Green. I was really mostly disappointed that it had to come to 
that.

                              {time}  1715

  I have had Presidents who I have strongly disagreed with over their 
rhetoric or their policies, and I think they have been, in my view, 
very harmful to the country.
  Members don't act that way and completely disrupt the operations of 
this Chamber and the joint session last night for their own theater. 
That is what I am afraid it was.
  Did the gentleman feel strongly? Certainly he did, but Members of 
Congress don't act that way. We don't wave a walking stick around at 
people like that. It is just not good. It is improper. It is not the 
way we are supposed to conduct ourselves in this place or at any public 
forum, city council level, what have you, including townhalls.
  Mr. Speaker, I enjoy having townhalls, by and large, but if they are 
going to be advertised as a forum as a free-for-all for people to come 
out and do screaming matches, what should we do? Should we just turn on 
the clock for 90 minutes and have at it?
  I would like that the interactions at our local level could be 
constructive and both sides can hear each other to understand what is 
going on.
  In this Chamber here, during that hallowed event, when the whole 
country and the whole world was watching, for someone to be able to 
single out their own interests or their own theater because they 
disagreed strongly with a President whom they don't like, it is really, 
really bad decorum and a really bad way of doing business.
  I tell the gentleman that I don't enjoy casting this vote at all if 
it should come up tomorrow. I personally like my colleague on the other 
side of the aisle. I wish we could have done better last night.
  I hope we can count each other as friends after this. I don't hold 
any long-term anger or angst, but it just wasn't good. I wish I could 
have taken the gentleman aside last night and said: Let's not do this.
  Unfortunately, it happened. This is a proper reaction. We can't just 
let this stand. It has to be done correctly. We have to have a decorum 
for this House, and this censure is what is necessary to hit that reset 
and do so.
  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman yielding time to me.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I have great respect for the gentleman who 
just spoke, but where was he and where were the Republicans when Joe 
Biden was President of the United States?
  I remember sitting here, and there was an entire heckling section on 
the Republican side. We didn't call for all of those Members to be 
removed. We wanted to go on with the people's business, but where was 
the gentleman? Where were my Republican friends?
  Nobody apologized for interrupting Joe Biden time and time again. The 
majority talks about lack of decorum. Go back and look at the tapes.
  There was silence on the Republican side. I appreciate the 
gentleman's selective outrage, but he would have more credibility had 
he expressed outrage when his colleagues were heckling Joe Biden.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Green).
  Mr. GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, and still I rise.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to explain why I did what I did, and I did it 
with intentionality. The President indicated that he had a mandate.

[[Page H1001]]

  I said to the President: ``You do not have a mandate to cut 
Medicaid.''
  I have constituents who need Medicaid. They will suffer, and some 
will die if they don't get Medicaid.
  I heard the Speaker when he said that I should cease. I did not, and 
I did not with intentionality. It was not done out of a burst of 
emotion. I was emotional about it, but I did it with intentionality.
  I think that, on some questions, questions of conscience, one has to 
be willing to suffer the consequences. I have said that I will. I will 
suffer whatever the consequences are because I don't believe that 
people should be without good healthcare.
  Mr. Speaker, I stood up for my constituents then. I am standing up 
for my constituents now. I am grateful to the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) for what he has said. I am grateful to 
those who have been standing with me.
  I will tell my colleague on the other side of the aisle: I appreciate 
him. I have no anger. The officers who escorted me out were kind to me. 
I don't blame the Speaker for anything.
  Mr. Speaker, I would do it again. I have to be candid with the 
gentleman. I am not trying to insult him in some way. This is a matter 
of principle. This is a matter of conscience. There are people 
suffering in this country because they don't have healthcare.
  I will close with this: On some issues that are matters of 
conscience, it is better to stand alone than to not stand at all. This 
is where I stand.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. Baumgartner).
  Mr. BAUMGARTNER. Mr. Speaker, I will start by thanking my colleague 
from Washington (Mr. Newhouse) for yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, Donald Trump is not the Republican President. He is the 
American President. What happened last night was beneath the dignity of 
the House and beneath the dignity of the American people. I say that as 
someone who is new to this body.
  I also point out how it was perceived and how it may have been 
interpreted.
  As Members know, each Member of the House receives a guest ticket. I 
decided to give my guest ticket, the first one that I was able to give 
for this kind of occasion, to a teacher from eastern Washington. I gave 
it to her with the goal of inspiring an interest in civics and public 
service in the next generation of young people.
  In fact, we ran a competition for students to nominate their teacher, 
and the winning teacher that came had never before been to Washington, 
D.C., had never been to the Halls of Congress, and was so excited that 
she was here to watch the joint session.

  I have no idea what her political beliefs were, no idea whether she 
is Republican or Democrat or Independent. She was just excited to be 
here as part of this experiment in democracy that we have. All of her 
students were watching from home.
  While it can be regrettable, and it happens on both sides, when 
people have a spontaneous outburst of emotion and maybe say something 
they shouldn't, what I saw and what I worry about what her students saw 
last night was a continued premeditated attack, and some might even say 
the appearance of a violent and threatening action with the cane.
  That may not have been the intent, but I worry that those students 
perceived what I saw as I watched was a scene that was beneath the 
dignity of this House, beneath the dignity of the American people, and 
certainly beneath the dignity of our President.
  At some point, America cannot continue on this slide towards 
continual partisan fighting and all of the divisiveness. We all need to 
do better, including myself and I think every Member of this body.
  Let's join together on this. Let's join together and realize that 
this episode was beneath the dignity of what the American people expect 
from Congress. Let's have this be a new beginning in civility from a 
low point that this body can rise and behave in the manner, I think, 
that all of the American people want it to behave, and certainly those 
high school students that were watching from home, who were so excited 
that their teacher was here to experience this special moment.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, with all due respect to the gentleman who 
just spoke, if he felt that the most offensive thing last night was Mr. 
Green coming to this floor, standing up in this Chamber, and pleading 
with the President not to cut people's healthcare, if he thinks that 
was the most offensive thing that occurred on the House floor last 
night, then I don't think he was paying attention to the speech that 
was being given by the President of the United States. Go back and 
reread it.
  Go back and reread it. It was a totally divisive and partisan speech. 
The President was calling Senators names, berating Joe Biden. It was a 
campaign speech.
  The gentleman from Washington (Mr. Baumgartner) says that the 
President is supposed to be the President of the entire United States, 
not just Republicans.
  Mr. Speaker, I wish we had seen that last night, but we didn't. In 
all of my years, I have never ever witnessed anything as partisan and 
as divisive as that.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Washington 
(Ms. DelBene).
  Ms. DelBENE. Mr. Speaker, one thing we should be talking about are 
the important investments that we make in medical research.
  The United States leads the world in medical research and innovation. 
Without our investments, more people would be dying from cancer, heart 
disease, and diabetes.
  Mr. Speaker, medical breakthroughs of tomorrow are at risk because of 
Trump's research cuts at the National Institutes of Health. These cuts 
will be especially felt in my home State of Washington, where we are 
leaders in advancing world-class scientific research that saves lives.
  Washington is home to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, where I 
recently visited to highlight the devastating impacts of these cuts on 
the 40,000 patients that they serve each year.
  In fiscal year 2024, Washington researchers were awarded nearly $1.3 
billion in NIH funding that supports 12,000 jobs in our State. One of 
my constituents works at an organization that is fighting autoimmune 
diseases. It is 80 percent funded by NIH investments. She is worried 
about the devastating impacts that these cuts would have on the 
patients who rely on their work.
  I started my career in medical research, and I know what losing 
funding or even the threat of it being cut off could have on 
institutions and their patients.
  The consequences of the President's decision will be felt in so many 
ways. Labs could go dark. Patients could be kicked off of lifesaving 
critical trials. New cures could be delayed. Future innovators could 
abandon the field.
  The President must stop the senseless attack on the research that 
saves money but, most importantly, saves lives.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock).
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Green deliberately disrupted 
Congress' proceedings during a joint session yesterday.
  This was an affront to the Constitution, which commands that the 
President report to the Congress from time to time. It was an insult to 
the Presidency, and it was a disgrace to this body.
  It was perpetrated not by some lunatic wearing buffalo horns but, 
rather, by an elected Member of the United States Congress. This is 
worthy of the harshest sanctions that we can apply.
  Mr. Speaker, many Members repeatedly interrupted this Presidential 
address with catcalls and insults and other gestures of disrespect. A 
Member once did this to President Obama. He apologized, and he was 
reprimanded.
  I didn't hear an apology from Mr. Green right now. What I heard was 
deliberate, calculated defiance.
  The whole reason for this building to exist and the whole reason for 
this House Chamber is to exchange our views, sometimes very sharply 
different views, and talk out the differences among us. In order for 
that to work, that discussion has to be accompanied by civility and 
decorum.
  Accordingly, our rules insist on that. I believe that all of those 
who breach

[[Page H1002]]

these rules need to be held accountable, lest this event become just 
another sad milestone in the denigration of this institution.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States said a lot of things 
last night. He used a personal insult against a sitting Senator from my 
home State, and the gentleman who just spoke is upset that someone 
stood up and asked him not to cut Medicaid?

                              {time}  1730

  Really? That is what this is all about?
  You heard from Mr. Green. There is not a gentler soul in this 
Chamber, and he was offended by some of the things the President was 
saying yesterday. I am all for decorum, but where is the decorum in 
throwing poor people off of healthcare? Where is the decorum in cutting 
food benefits and nutrition benefits to people who are in desperate 
need? Where is the decorum in cutting school meals?
  These are unusual times that we are in. They are firing veterans as 
we are gathered here today, people who serve our country with 
distinction. Our constituents and your constituents are upset, and here 
we are upset because somebody got up and pleaded with the President not 
to cut Medicaid.
  Where were all of my Republican friends when we had a heckling 
session year after year of Republicans berating Barack Obama? There was 
nothing. There was nothing. I can't believe we are having this debate.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. 
Raskin).
  Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, thousands of my constituents have been 
illegally fired by Elon Musk and by Donald Trump. One of them was with 
me last night, Dr. Lauren McGee, who was an NIH pediatric cancer 
specialist heading up a team looking into osteosarcoma, bone cancer for 
children. She got fired on February 14 because she was a probationary 
employee. Probationary, not because she had done anything wrong, but 
because she had been promoted into the new job. She was with me last 
night, and she had to sit here and listen, along with me--and I had 
spent the day with her--to Donald Trump saying one of their top 
priorities is to fight childhood cancer, and she got sacked on that 
Valentine's Day massacre.
  Now they want to censure the gentleman from Texas. Why? Because he 
challenged the President about his claim that he has a mandate to cut 
Medicaid, and that is what the gentleman was trying to raise.
  We have Republicans in the Chamber who have never voted to impeach 
Donald Trump for inciting a violent insurrection against this Congress, 
this Constitution, and his own Vice President, who have never voted to 
even censure the President for doing that, and yet they want to censure 
the gentleman from Texas.
  Last night, President Trump called a U.S. Senator from Massachusetts 
``Pocahontas,'' using an ethnic slur to go after her. If you really 
want to proceed to censure the gentleman from Texas for talking about 
no mandate to cut Medicaid, then certainly we are going to have to move 
to censure the President for using a racial and ethnic slur against a 
sitting United States Senator.
  I would prefer to stand by the tradition of free speech and even the 
tradition of heckling. There is a fine American art of heckling. If you 
read the Lincoln-Douglas debates, I recommend the Harold Holzer version 
of it because the newspapers carried all of the hecklers' comments, 
too. People would get up and heckle, and Lincoln would interact with 
them and Douglas would interact with them.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the 
gentleman from Maryland.
  Mr. RASKIN. Let's stop clutching our pearls. There has been lots of 
heckling over on that side of the aisle. I saw the gentlewoman from 
Georgia heckle the last President and have a whole heckling section 
there. We didn't try to censure them or kick them out of Congress or 
anything. We actually not only say we believe in free speech but we 
believe in free speech. We will stand up for people's right to speak.
  Now, I don't believe in the kind of heckling where you drown somebody 
out and you make it impossible for them to speak, but the gentleman was 
trying to start a conversation as opposed to just being spoken to all 
night.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this is very interesting to listen to the arguments 
coming from the other side of the aisle about what we are doing here 
tonight.
  In talking about free speech, it seemed to me that the gentleman from 
Texas was doing all he could to prohibit or get in the way of the 
President of the United States exercising his free speech and his 
address to the joint session.
  This is not about policy. This is not about whether Republicans are 
better than Democrats or vice versa. This is about how we conduct 
ourselves on the House floor. This is about how we treat each other. 
This is a reflection on every single one of us in this Chamber. As my 
colleague from the State of Washington said, it is not just us this 
affects. This affects the kids of our country, as well, who are 
learning, one way or the other, from our examples.
  You can go on and on about how much you disagree and detest some of 
the policies and positions of the President of the United States. Be my 
guest, but that is not what is being argued tonight. That is not the 
issue that we are taking a stand on today. This is how we, as a body, 
should conduct ourselves in these hallowed Halls, this Chamber, that 
not very many people ever get to set foot into.
  This is something we should hold to a higher standard. We have to or 
else what are we? Are we just a debate club that yells at each other, 
or do we stand for something? Do we truly see ourselves as 
Representatives of the people of the United States?
  Something has to change. It truly does. A line has to be drawn. Not 
all of us on either side of the aisle are perfect examples of what we 
could or should be, but certainly, as I mentioned before, in my career 
here, I have never ever seen a Member of Congress escorted from the 
floor of the House by the Sergeant At Arms. It has never happened in my 
career, and I don't want to see it happen again.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Do you know what has never happened in my career? The President of 
the United States coming before a joint session of Congress and 
insulting Members by name individually, shouting slurs at people.
  I have never seen that before. Would the gentleman agree with me that 
Trump deserves a censure for calling my Senator from Massachusetts a 
slur? Would that be appropriate?
  Again, this was not business as usual yesterday. To make believe that 
somehow it was or that the person who was giving the speech yesterday 
was acting within the structures of decorum is laughable.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Jackson).
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.
  Mr. JACKSON of Illinois. Mr. Speaker:
  ``Cowardice asks the question, `Is it safe?' Expediency asks the 
question, `Is it politic?' Vanity asks the question, `Is it popular?' 
But conscience asks the question, `Is it right?' And there comes a time 
when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor 
popular, but one must take it because one's conscience tells one that 
it is right.''
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the courage, the character, 
and the great decency of the Honorable Congressman Al Green for saying 
what is right, when there are many amongst us that have cowardice that 
have seemed to have lost their backbone and spine to call out untruths.
  Mr. Speaker, he is a man that is standing up for those who are poor, 
who are left out, who have been left behind, a man that is standing up 
for Medicaid and Medicare. As we sit here

[[Page H1003]]

and talk about some of this pious irrelevancy and sanctimonious 
trivialities, this man should be heralded and stand up for his decency, 
for his courage for standing up for the poor, for the least of these.
  There is a theological problem in this institution when we are more 
kind to those who are rich and powerful than those who are poor, when 
we are talking about balancing the budget off the backs of those who 
need healthcare, who need housing, who need food assistance, to give 
tax breaks to the rich.
  Once again, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 
Honorable Congressman Al Green.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to the time remaining.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Massachusetts has 13\1/2\ 
minutes remaining.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro).
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, while Republicans try to distract us with 
this resolution, our constituents are reaching out to us. What are they 
asking us? They are asking us to stop the Republican assault on our 
schools, our livelihoods, and our communities.
  Another constituent who reached out to me is named Kris. He is a 
student at Common Ground High School. Common Ground High School is an 
innovative, educational, environmental, and community-building venture, 
combining a charter high school, an urban demonstration farm, and a 
community environmental education center.
  Due to the funding freeze, Kris said essential programs at Common 
Ground, like the youth workforce development and community food relief, 
which also partners with CitySeed to help people afford food stamp 
purchases from the farm, have been shut down. They have been shut down 
because of this freeze, and 71 student workers have been laid off.
  Students like Kris are reaching out not just because of their own 
future and their education has been affected but because they see how 
their community is hurt by these cuts, as well.
  There are people today around this country, not only in my district, 
who are getting hurt thanks to Republican cuts. The funding freeze is 
not just killing the crops at Common Ground, but it is killing academic 
futures, new ideas for education, and opportunities for young people in 
this country. This is what Republicans are trying to do by distracting 
us with their censures.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Doggett).
  Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, Al Green is my friend and, for that matter, 
so is Mr. Newhouse, though I don't know him quite as well.
  I think this motion is a serious mistake. I sat here in this House 
the night that President Obama made his state of the Union speech, and  
 Joe Wilson from South Carolina jumped up and said: ``You lie.''
  Nothing was done about that.
  Mr. Green engaged in conduct that I chose not to participate in, 
though I found that a number of my constituents wished I had joined 
him. He expressed his strong views in a way that I would not have 
voiced them myself, but he left this Chamber voluntarily after doing 
so. To censure him now sets us back. It does not move us forward toward 
a more bipartisan and a more respectful House.
  Indeed, I think many Americans will be surprised that Republicans get 
upset about decorum on anything. There was no Republican objection when 
President Trump decided to pardon the criminals that were responsible 
for the deaths of police officers in this building when they defended 
us on January 6, sprayed them with bear spray, and harassed and harmed 
so many officers.
  There has been no Republican concern about decorum when the President 
fired the head of the Office of Ethics at the White House, when he 
fired the watchdogs of about 17 different Federal departments and 
agencies, the inspectors general that are designed to uphold and check 
out corruption and waste in our government.

                              {time}  1745

  There has been no outrage when President Trump decided that he would 
take on General Milley for being the patriot that he is and seek to 
obtain revenge on him.
  What Mr. Green was talking about was outrage about something that is 
very important. There are 700,000 seniors in Texas who rely on Medicaid 
and nursing homes.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the 
gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, half the children in my hometown, and 
probably more in Mr. Green's, are at risk of losing their care as seen 
in our Children's Hospital. Medicaid is a lifeline to individuals with 
disabilities.
  He was passionate. He was emotional. He is deeply committed to 
protecting the vulnerable. He should not be censured for the way in 
which he expressed his passion and his concern and his love of justice.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I appreciate the comments of Mr. Doggett and do consider him a friend 
as well, but let me just tell you that we are talking apples to oranges 
when we are speaking about something that happened under President 
Obama's speech on the Republican side.
  Last night, Mr. Green was reprimanded at least three times by the 
Speaker to stop and desist what he was doing, shaking his cane at the 
President at the rostrum in a threatening manner, underscoring--what I 
saw was emotion, energy and emotion; and intentionality, absolutely, 
intending to disrupt the speech by the President of the United States.
  I think we are talking about two different things here. The incident 
during the Obama administration was over in just a few seconds. This 
went on and on and on. Certainly, debating the issue is one thing in 
different circumstances. This was not an open debate. Mr. Green was 
trying to make it one.
  This was a message from the President, so the actions that we are 
proposing to take here are absolutely justified. The President was here 
under invitation by the House of Representatives for a report to 
Congress. It was not an open debate. It was a message being received by 
the joint session, and that is the way it should be treated.
  Respect should be given to the Presidency whether or not they are 
your guy or your gal. It is the Office of the President that needs the 
respect because it reflects on all of us as Members of the House of 
Representatives.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Takano).
  Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member McGovern for yielding 
to me.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this resolution. I am here as 
the ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs to 
represent the interests of our Nation's veterans when they are 
callously being targeted.
  While our colleagues across the aisle are determined to shift the 
public narrative away from the harm being done to veterans, we choose 
to focus on what our President failed to address last night. He spent 
an hour and 40 minutes touting his so-called accomplishments while 
veterans watching at home were waiting for answers, answers and 
explanations they never received.
  While President Trump was addressing us last night on this very House 
floor, movements were being made by the Chief of Staff for Veterans 
Affairs, Christopher Syrek, to execute a detrimental reduction in force 
at VA. With the support of this administration, VA plans to move 
forward with firing an additional 83,000 VA employees.
  Sitting in the audience of President Trump's address were 20 veterans 
who had been indiscriminately fired from Federal agencies, veterans he 
failed to address. Not once during his speech was he able to look them 
in the eyes and speak to the merciless effects his administration's 
decisions have made on their community. He didn't attempt to justify 
them because he knows there is no justification.
  Our veterans served our Nation. They put their lives on the line for 
us and this country's values, and now look at what they are facing. 
They are facing attacks on their benefits. They are facing attacks on 
their healthcare, education, and housing. When we reduce

[[Page H1004]]

an agency established to work for them, we fail them.
  I stand behind Congressman Green as he stood up for the rights of all 
veterans and all Americans.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire, is the gentleman prepared 
to close?
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. I am prepared to close, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for 
the purpose of closing.
  Mr. Speaker, I just want to say, the virtue signaling we are seeing 
from Republicans right now is insane. I am sorry. Who was it who 
yelled: ``You lie'' at President Obama during his address? A 
Republican.
  Who was it who heckled President Biden, standing up and ranting like 
lunatics? It was Republicans.
  Go back and look at the videos. It was embarrassing. Nothing was done 
about that.
  I am the ranking member of the damn Rules Committee, and I have a 
question. Why are the rules only applied to Democratic Members?
  Are Republicans ready to censure their own Members for wearing 
campaign hats in the Chamber last night? That is a violation of the 
rules.
  Are they ready to censure the Republican Member who got caught voting 
from California last month, which is a violation of the House rules? He 
wasn't even in the Chamber. Hell, he wasn't even on the East Coast.
  Are these people going to be censured? Of course not, because their 
outrage is all BS.
  There was a breach of dignity and decorum in this Chamber last night, 
but it wasn't Al Green. It was the President of the United States, who 
stood at that podium and delivered a manifesto of pure fantasy.
  He says he wants to make America affordable again. Well, inflation 
just hit a 7-month high, and his new trade war will cost families 
$2,000 more a year.
  Trump says he wants to balance the budget. His plan would add $3 
trillion to the deficit to give billionaires another tax cut--let me 
repeat that again--to give billionaires a tax cut. All these cutbacks, 
all these firings are going to fund tax cuts for billionaires.
  He says Social Security is paying benefits to millions of people over 
100 years old. That is totally wrong, debunked a hundred times.
  He says he cares about childhood cancer. He slashed the funding for 
child cancer research.
  He says his tariffs are good for farmers. Last time he did this, 
farmers lost $27 billion.
  He says he supports law enforcement. He pardoned the people who beat 
police officers on January 6. He pardoned them: people who tried to 
overturn the election, people who brutally beat the men and women who 
protect us in this Chamber every single day.
  There was just one outrageous statement after another, and not a 
single peep from my Republican friends. Nothing. Now, Mr. Speaker, 
Republicans have the nerve to come down here and censure anyone.
  Republicans moved heaven and earth to come down here and defend the 
honor of their boss, Donald Trump, but they won't lift a finger for 
their own constituents. Look in the mirror and censure yourselves.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  One of the things when I was a freshman in Congress that just shocked 
me, amazed me, is how easily events on the floor would devolve into 
what I would describe as something akin to a high school pep rally, and 
that pains me to say that.
  We are all adults here, discussing some of the most important issues 
facing the American public, I would daresay the entire world, right 
here in this Chamber. The things that happen in this Chamber that 
reflect poorly on us reflect poorly on every single one of us.
  I would say to you, Mr. Speaker, that this is truly a wake-up call 
for this Chamber. The lack of decorum has reached a new high when the 
President of the United States cannot even come into our Chamber, 
invited, and complete his speech without the interaction that we saw 
last night.
  We have to take this action of censure. Let me tell you, there are 
many people on my side of the aisle that would like to take this even 
further. The notion of intentionality versus emotion does not justify 
the actions that we witnessed last night, the disrespect of the 
institution.
  Using the argument that, well, our side did it so we can do it, too, 
well, that doesn't work. That does not hold water.
  Mr. Speaker, we can do better. Mr. Speaker, we must do better. We 
cannot ignore the willful disruption intended to stop a proceeding.
  Let me use another word that is also difficult to say. It was 
shameful.
  Without decorum, without respect, what have we got? What do we have? 
Truly.
  You have all seen the newsreels of other countries that chambers 
similar to ours evolve into fistfights on the floor.
  Is that where we are headed next? Is that what we want to have happen 
so that these fine people that work their tails off every day can be 
part of that and be the referees in a situation that is out of control?
  Like I said, this shameful action reflects on every single one of us. 
You are right. I will concede that all of us need a reminder that we 
all need to raise our level of accountability due to the actions that 
we take.
  Mr. Speaker, I think this is a necessary but difficult step. This 
resolution is offered in all seriousness. It is something that I 
believe that we must do in order to get us to the next level of conduct 
in this hallowed Chamber.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues, Republicans and Democrats, 
to join with me to attain that better level of conduct. We owe it to 
our constituents for sure. We owe it to our future constituents in this 
country. We owe it to our country.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The previous question is ordered on the 
resolution.
  The question is on adoption of the resolution.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this question are postponed.

                          ____________________