January 15, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 8 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages H556-H558]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         FURTHER ADDITIONAL CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2019

  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
joint resolution (H.J. Res. 27) making further continuing 
appropriations for fiscal year 2019, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the joint resolution.
  The text of the joint resolution is as follows:

                              H.J. Res. 27

       Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
     United States of America in Congress assembled, That the 
     Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019 (division C of Public Law 
     115-245) is further amended by striking the date specified in 
     section 105(3) and inserting ``February 1, 2019''.
        This joint resolution may be cited as the ``Further 
     Additional Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
New York (Mrs. Lowey) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Granger) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on H.J. Res. 27, currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, we are now in the 25th day of the Trump shutdown, the 
longest Federal Government shutdown in United States history.
  This past Friday, hundreds of thousands of dedicated Federal 
employees went without a paycheck. It is shameful that the stubborn 
whims of this President have harmed the security of America's public 
servants. That includes Federal law enforcement officials at the FBI, 
the very Secret Service agents who protect the President, and those who 
work tirelessly to protect our air travel, our national parks, our 
environment, and public health.
  The bill before us is the seventh--let me repeat, the seventh--piece 
of legislation Democrats have put on the House floor to end the Trump 
shutdown and get the government back to work for the American people. 
It will reopen government through February 1, providing time for 
Congress to come to a full-year agreement without further jeopardizing 
vital services or the pay of Federal workers.
  It is long past time that Senate Republicans join us to reopen the 
government, pay our Federal employees, and then negotiate on border 
security and immigration policy. Madam Speaker, I hope that my 
colleagues across the Capitol come to their senses and end this 
shutdown.
  I urge support for this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H.J. Res. 27, a 
continuing resolution providing funding through February 1.
  I support the goal of reopening the government. There are many 
critical programs that are on pause which are important to my 
constituents and all of us, programs like TSA, Border Patrol, Coast 
Guard, and air traffic controllers.
  Unfortunately, the bill we are considering today will not restart 
those programs or help our districts. That is because it is not a 
comprehensive solution to resolve the government shutdown and fully 
address the security and humanitarian crisis we face on our southern 
border.
  Criminals, terrorists, and drugs are flooding our shores. Tens of 
thousands of children, many of them without their parents, make the 
dangerous trip to the United States every year. I have been to the 
border and to Central America, and I have heard the heartbreaking 
stories. This situation is unacceptable and it must be addressed. We 
can and we must do better.
  Madam Speaker, again, I share the concern that parts of the 
government

[[Page H557]]

remain closed and employees are not yet being paid, but moving this 
bill across the floor will not fix the problem. To put it simply, there 
is not a bipartisan consensus on this plan.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to 
the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), my good friend, an outstanding 
legislator, who is the chair-designate of the Energy and Water 
Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
  Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Lowey for the 
recognition and the opportunity to speak.
  Madam Speaker, this vote is a tribute to the thousands of Federal 
patriots who have shown up to work for the past 25 days, working with 
no pay. This must end today. I call on my colleagues in this body to 
vote to support our hardworking public servants.
  This bill is a clean continuing resolution. It comprises short-term 
funding through February 1 for all the agencies and departments 
currently shuttered for no good reason. Those include the Department of 
Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the State Department, the 
Interior Department, the Agriculture Department, the Department of 
Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of 
Transportation, and many more agencies.
  The President is not serving this Nation; he is not serving it well 
as he uses his authority to harm our Republic. Civil service workers 
are the bonds that hold our country together.
  The Commander in Chief is hurting our Nation and holds our entire 
government hostage to his harebrained notion that you can stop drug 
trafficking and migration with a wall. The drug traffickers must be 
laughing up a storm. They already ship it here hidden in legal cargo. 
They dug tunnels under the 650 miles of border that already exists. 
They figured that out. And they have been flying contraband material 
over our border. They boat illegal contraband in here from our coastal 
ports, and they ship it from China through even the Postal Service, and 
we don't have a mechanism to detect fentanyl in the mails.
  To secure our Nation and our border, our Nation first needs to open 
all our government agencies for the American people who are paying the 
bills, open those departments and pay the men and women who dedicate 
their lives to protecting our borders and protecting us. Once the 
government is open, we can spend the next weeks discussing how best to 
fund mechanisms that will truly improve our security. This could 
include thorough inspection of all cargo.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the 
gentlewoman from Ohio.
  Ms. KAPTUR. This could include enhanced electronic surveillance 
between ports of entry. This could include additional personnel at all 
ports of entry to increase checks. And, frankly, in communities like I 
represent, it should involve increasing DEA agents to take care of the 
gangs that are trafficking in these illegal materials.
  But most importantly, we need a President who understands you don't 
stop the drug trade or undocumented migration of individuals by 
shuttering the entire Department of Homeland Security or furloughing 
the border agents or making them go to work with no pay. He has got the 
wrong answer for what America needs to address in border security.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.
  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Alabama (Mr. Aderholt).
  Mr. ADERHOLT. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for the time.
  Madam Speaker, I think we all agree that the American people expect 
this legislative body to deliver solutions to the difficult challenges 
that face our Nation each and every day.
  As a longtime member of the Appropriations Committee, I have worked 
with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle over the years to try to 
reach agreements when we were trying to fund the Federal Government. 
What we have to do is try to find common ground.
  The matter of how we fully fund the Federal Government for the 
remainder of FY19, of course, remains unsolved basically for one 
reason: My colleagues on the other side of the aisle won't negotiate. 
They have rejected requests to negotiate a deal. They need to come to 
the table with a counteroffer. Instead, they continue to kick the can 
down the road and continue to play politics with this issue.
  Our colleagues reject the solutions requested by the professional 
personnel who actually protect the border. By digging in a position 
which is political and not policy, ultimately, they are responsible for 
the shutdown of the government agencies.
  However, this short-term CR, known as a continuing resolution, does 
not solve the problem. The Democratic leadership has said 100 percent 
no. This bill hits, basically, the snooze button for a few more weeks. 
I think it is time that our colleagues on the other side of the aisle 
wake up and negotiate and come back to the table to find a real 
solution.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to 
the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz), my good friend, 
who is the chair-designate of the Military Construction, Veterans 
Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for 
yielding.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to reopen the 
Federal Government and end this destructive Trump shutdown. For 25 days 
now, the Trump shutdown has inflicted financial pain and anxiety on 
families, businesses, and entire communities across the United States.
  This week, I spoke with a room full of these victims. Aviation safety 
experts detailed for me how the Trump shutdown has eroded an air travel 
system that, for now, is safe, but they are growing worried and 
concerned.
  I heard from Federal workers who told me that the changes to tax laws 
ushered in during the Republican tax scam have left citizens scrambling 
for answers, yet workers are not there who can shepherd them through 
those changes.

                              {time}  1230

  A local leader who represents domestic violence shelters warned me, 
if the Trump shutdown drags on, as many as a third of the Florida 
facilities that women count on for refuge when they are victims of 
domestic violence could find themselves cutting services.
  Democrats in the House have done our job. We have passed half a dozen 
bills to reopen the government, yet Senate Republicans have decided to 
hide behind President Trump and his border boondoggle refusing to take 
``yes'' for an answer that could end this irresponsible shutdown.
  While they are busy bowing to the President, Senate Republicans 
recklessly ignore that public safety is at stake. They downplay, and 
even dismiss, that 800,000 families are now living without a paycheck 
today.
  Businesses, farmers, veterans, restaurant workers, domestic violence 
victims, and many more are all feeling real pain from this unnecessary 
shutdown. We need to do our jobs. We need to work together and actually 
be the coequal branch of government that the Constitution describes.
  So today, House Democrats will do just that and give Senate 
Republicans another option to get us out of this latest Trump trap and 
offer this bill that would reopen all closed Federal agencies through 
February 1. This bill would allow time for us to negotiate border 
security and immigration reform, but without inflicting further 
economic harm on our families and our businesses. It is the smart, 
reasonable, and compassionate thing to do.
  I ask my colleagues to pass this bill into law without delay.
  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Newhouse).
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Madam Speaker, it is once again disappointing to 
witness my Democratic colleagues pull political stunts rather than make 
serious efforts to find a compromise to reopen the government.
  This legislation that we have before us today has only seen the light 
of day for less than 24 hours. Democratic leadership is abusing the 
suspension list--something usually reserved for bipartisan, 
noncontroversial legislation--to

[[Page H558]]

play politics with this government shutdown.
  Let me be clear: This legislation will not reopen the government. 
This has, once again, as we have seen for 3 weeks in a row now, House 
Democrats using valuable time on the floor of the House of 
Representatives to play partisan politics rather than to do our job to 
find a real solution to reopen shuttered agencies.
  It is being reported that President Trump has invited several House 
Democrats to the White House today to discuss the government shutdown 
and potentially find solutions for compromise. Unfortunately, it is 
also being reported that several of my fellow House Members have 
rejected that invitation. If that is true, it demonstrates a serious 
neglect of our duties as representatives of the people.
  As my friend from California, Jackie Speier, rightly said just this 
morning on cable news: ``I think when the President calls, it is 
incumbent upon us to respect the office and to attend the meeting. And 
if they have been asked, I would suggest that they go.''
  Madam Speaker, I could not agree more. Every single Member of this 
body should be working on behalf of the American people to reopen this 
government.
  The President is demonstrating his willingness to compromise. I 
sincerely hope my Democratic colleagues will heed the invitation and 
come to the table with a real offer. Any rejection of this invitation 
is a shameful disregard of the seriousness of the situation before us.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close. I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Fleischmann).
  Mr. FLEISCHMANN. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.J. Res. 27.
  I thank Ranking Member Granger for allowing me to speak on this very 
important issue, and I thank my distinguished colleagues on the other 
side of the aisle. Mrs. Lowey is a friend from New York. We have served 
together.
  Madam Speaker, this situation is frustrating. We have come to a place 
right now where I received a phone call last night from the Commandant 
of the Coast Guard, Admiral Schultz. We talked about the wonderful men 
and women who are serving so well and so hard and who are not going to 
get a paycheck because of this situation.
  We all want border security; I believe that. But I also believe that 
President Trump is right, that we need a wall, a barrier.
  I happen to represent the people of the Third District of Tennessee--
wonderful people, east Tennessee--and they tell me time and time again: 
Build a wall; have a border; keep us safe; but we also want the 
government open.
  And when I look at the polling data, when I look at the phone calls, 
it is high time that we get back to work, open the government, but keep 
us safe.
  In our districts, we all represent Republicans and Democrats and 
Independents. Hopefully, most of the people vote. But even people who 
pay their taxes who decide not to vote, they count on the American 
Representatives, our House, to work, and they count on the Senate.
  With all due respect, H.J. Res. 27 is dead on arrival in the United 
States Senate. We know that. The American people know that. The 
President knows that. We need a compromise on this wall issue right now 
that will satisfy security, that will keep the American people safe, 
and, yes, that will open the government.
  Compromise is not a dirty word in this scenario. It is what we need 
to do, and we need good faith. I am not alleging bad faith on anyone in 
this body. I am saying it is time to call a timeout and get back to 
work and do the people's business.
  They sent us here to govern. We need to govern. We need a wall. We 
need border security, and we need the government open. It is high time 
that we get there
  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Rutherford).
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to this bill. 
Another week has gone by and we find ourselves with another exercise in 
futility.
  As I said last week, these CRs are a waste of everyone's time and a 
waste of countless hours of hard work by members of staff on both sides 
of the aisle.
  While we waste floor time and the American citizens' time, there are 
800,000 families--and more--that are feeling the negative effects of 
the gamesmanship on the other side of the aisle. These effects are not 
limited to government employees. Contractors, small businesses, and the 
economy at large have been suffering for weeks.
  Just the other day, in Jacksonville, I spoke with the father of a 
government subcontractor who explained to me how much this shutdown has 
hurt his son's livelihood.
  Now, this idea that once the government is opened back up and 
government employees are going to receive their backpay, as I am sure 
most eventually will, there are many across this country who will not. 
His son is one of them.
  And just to prove how ridiculous this entire thing is, due to the 
recalcitrance of Democrats, experts say that this shutdown has already 
cost our economy more than the President's request for the wall.
  My colleagues on the other side of aisle want to score political 
points by denying our duly-elected President a campaign promise, a 
simple promise to protect the American citizen.
  Rather than focusing energy on reaching a compromise with the Senate 
and the President to reopen the government and get Federal workers 
their paychecks, we are spending time on our bills, bringing bills to 
the floor that have absolutely no chance of becoming law.
  Here is my message to the House majority: Stop using working-class 
Americans as leverage and come to the table to find a compromise on 
behalf of the American people.
  I have said it before, and I will say it again: If the Speaker is 
serious about opening the government and getting people back to work, 
bring a bill to the floor that the Senate will pass and the President 
will sign.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. GRANGER. Madam Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on this continuing 
resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam Speaker, it is time to end the Trump shutdown. 
Let's vote ``yes.''
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the joint resolution, H.J. Res. 27.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Madam 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 motion will be postponed.

                          ____________________