July 25, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 126 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session
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VENEZUELA TPS ACT OF 2019; Congressional Record Vol. 165, No. 126
(House of Representatives - July 25, 2019)
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[Pages H7440-H7443] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] VENEZUELA TPS ACT OF 2019 The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Carson of Indiana). Pursuant to clause 1(c) of rule XIX, further consideration of the bill (H.R. 549) to designate Venezuela under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to permit nationals of Venezuela to be eligible for temporary protected status under such section, and for other purposes, will now resume. The Clerk read the title of the bill. Motion to Recommit Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentleman opposed to the bill? Mr. RESCHENTHALER. I am in its present form. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion to recommit. The Clerk read as follows: Mr. Reschenthaler moves to recommit the bill H.R. 549 to the Committee on the Judiciary with instructions to report the same back to the House forthwith with the following amendment: Page 1, line 11, before the comma, insert the following: ``because of the economic, humanitarian, security, and refugee crisis that is a direct result of years of socialist policies [[Page H7441]] implemented by the regimes of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro''. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Pennsylvania is recognized for 5 minutes in support of his motion. Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, the motion to recommit I am offering today is a very simple one. The motion to recommit inserts language into this bill that blames Venezuela's economic, humanitarian, security, and refugee crisis squarely where it belongs, on socialism. This crisis is a direct result of years of socialist policies implemented by the authoritative regimes of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro. Venezuela should be the wealthiest country in South America. Indeed, it once was. However, like all socialist regimes, Chavez and Maduro ripped power from the hands of their people, depriving Venezuelans of their personal liberties and relegating them to poverty, death, and despair. In socialist countries, the government no longer serves the people; the people serve the government. Venezuela is currently experiencing, according to The New York Times, the worst economic collapse outside of war in the last half-century. The country's economy has shrunk twice as much as the Soviet bloc's economy did during their collapse. Venezuelans continue to suffer from shortages of food, medicine, and simple commodities. Inflation is set to reach 10 million percent this year. Ten million percent inflation? Mr. Speaker, that is unthinkable. Venezuela's economy is so bad and its inflation is so out of control that, according to Bloomberg, a haircut costs five bananas and two eggs. It is absolutely ridiculous. This is what it has come to in Venezuela. One-tenth of the population has fled the country due to economic collapse and government repression. As Margaret Thatcher once said, the problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money. Mr. Speaker, earlier this year, I was fortunate enough to get to the border of Colombia and Venezuela. In fact, I was with a bipartisan, bicameral delegation to the border. I talked to refugees about the conditions from which they fled. I heard stories of physicians who were performing surgeries with smartphone lights because the lights in the operating room went off and on. I heard stories from family members who said that their other family members were dying because they couldn't get penicillin for simple wounds and infections. I saw a woman crossing a river in a wheelchair because she was desperately seeking medical attention. It was truly heartbreaking. To this day, over 3 million Venezuelans have fled for Colombia while the ruthless Maduro regime blocks humanitarian aid into Venezuela. Yet, Mr. Speaker, sadly, Members of this very body continue to stand with Maduro. Mr. Speaker, while Members of this very body stand with Maduro, they simultaneously refuse to recognize Guaido as the legitimate President of Venezuela. They continue to blame the United States for Venezuela's collapse. They align themselves with the disastrous, inhumane policies of socialism. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to call the crisis in Venezuela for what it is: the result of unfettered socialism. I ask that they support this motion to recommit, which won't kill the bill and which won't delay its adoption. We must send a strong message; we must send a united message; and we must send a message to the world that the United States is a beacon of freedom and hope, that the United States will always fight oppression, and that the United States will always empower the people. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. Ms. MUCARSEL-POWELL. Mr. Speaker, I claim the time in opposition to this motion. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5 minutes. Ms. MUCARSEL-POWELL. Mr. Speaker, this is an outrageous and truly insulting amendment meant to do nothing more than to score cheap political points. Let's be clear, Republicans are offering this amendment to take a stand against a socialist dictator, but they plan to vote against this bill, a bill that does nothing more than protect people from that very dictator. In other words, Republicans want to say that they support the Venezuelan people, but they are completely unwilling to do anything for them. I have just one thing to say to my Republican colleagues: Venezuelans don't need your empty words. They need action now. Let's be clear: Every American opposes dictatorial oppression, whether it comes from the far left or from the far right. In South America, we have seen dictators from the right and the left, like Augusto Pinochet in Chile or Jorge Rafael Videla in Argentina, both of whom killed and disappeared thousands of their own citizens in pursuit of rightwing agendas. During those regimes, we condemned dictators. I hope you remember those times, Mr. Speaker. We did not use the tragedy of the people to score cheap political points. We all oppose dictatorship and tyranny. It is what binds us together as Americans. Coming from South America, I understand very well what happens when we see a dictator rise, when it goes unchecked. Instead of honoring democratic principles, this amendment uses it as a political weapon to divide our Nation. That is bad enough, but it is worse when those who offer the amendment are also unwilling to help oppressed people who find themselves in a similar situation to the countless immigrants who came to Plymouth Rock, Ellis Island, or the Freedom Tower. Let me ask this: Do you think that oppressed Venezuelans, immigrants who desperately fled to the United States to seek refuge, prefer that we vote and waste our time on an empty condemnation or that we pass meaningful legislation to prevent the administration from deporting them back to a country suffering one of the worst humanitarian crises in this hemisphere? Trump has said that he condemns Maduro and that he supports the Venezuelan people, but his words are as empty as this Republican motion before us. Trump's hypocritical immigration policies have left this House no other option but to act. We have the opportunity to set aside politics, like 37 of my Republican colleagues did on Tuesday, and do right by our Venezuelan brothers and sisters. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this motion to recommit. Let's support our Venezuelan brothers and sisters. ``Apoyemos a nuestros hermanos venezolanos.'' Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is ordered on the motion to recommit. There was no objection. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to recommit. The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that the noes appeared to have it. Recorded Vote Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote. A recorded vote was ordered. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XX, the Chair will reduce to 5 minutes the minimum time for any electronic vote on the question of passage. This is a 5-minute vote. The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 215, noes 217, not voting 0, as follows: [Roll No. 513] AYES--215 Abraham Aderholt Allen Amash Amodei Armstrong Arrington Axne Babin Bacon Baird Balderson Banks Barr Bergman Biggs Bilirakis Bishop (UT) Bost Brady Brindisi Brooks (AL) Brooks (IN) Buchanan Buck Bucshon Budd Burchett Burgess Byrne Calvert Carter (GA) Carter (TX) Chabot Cheney Cline Cloud Cole Collins (GA) Collins (NY) Comer Conaway Cook Crawford Crenshaw Crow Cunningham Curtis Davidson (OH) Davis, Rodney DesJarlais Diaz-Balart Duffy Duncan Dunn Emmer Estes Ferguson Finkenauer Fitzpatrick Fleischmann Flores Fortenberry Foxx (NC) Fulcher Gaetz [[Page H7442]] Gallagher Gianforte Gibbs Gohmert Golden Gonzalez (OH) Gooden Gosar Gottheimer Granger Graves (GA) Graves (LA) Graves (MO) Green (TN) Griffith Grothman Guest Guthrie Hagedorn Harris Hartzler Hern, Kevin Herrera Beutler Hice (GA) Higgins (LA) Hill (AR) Holding Hollingsworth Horn, Kendra S. Hudson Huizenga Hunter Hurd (TX) Johnson (LA) Johnson (OH) Johnson (SD) Jordan Joyce (OH) Joyce (PA) Katko Keller Kelly (MS) Kelly (PA) Kim King (IA) King (NY) Kinzinger Kustoff (TN) LaHood LaMalfa Lamborn Latta Lesko Long Loudermilk Lucas Luetkemeyer Marchant Marshall Massie Mast McCarthy McCaul McClintock McHenry McKinley Meadows Meuser Miller Mitchell Moolenaar Mooney (WV) Mullin Murphy Newhouse Norman Nunes Olson Palazzo Palmer Pence Perry Peterson Porter Posey Ratcliffe Reed Reschenthaler Rice (SC) Riggleman Roby Rodgers (WA) Roe, David P. Rogers (AL) Rogers (KY) Rooney (FL) Rose (NY) Rose, John W. Rouzer Roy Rutherford Scalise Schweikert Scott, Austin Sensenbrenner Sherrill Shimkus Simpson Slotkin Smith (MO) Smith (NE) Smith (NJ) Smucker Spanberger Spano Stauber Stefanik Steil Steube Stewart Stivers Taylor Thompson (PA) Thornberry Timmons Tipton Turner Upton Van Drew Wagner Walberg Walden Walker Walorski Waltz Watkins Weber (TX) Webster (FL) Wenstrup Westerman Williams Wilson (SC) Wittman Womack Woodall Wright Yoho Young Zeldin NOES--217 Adams Aguilar Allred Barragan Bass Beatty Bera Beyer Bishop (GA) Blumenauer Blunt Rochester Bonamici Boyle, Brendan F. Brown (MD) Brownley (CA) Bustos Butterfield Carbajal Cardenas Carson (IN) Cartwright Case Casten (IL) Castor (FL) Castro (TX) Chu, Judy Cicilline Cisneros Clark (MA) Clarke (NY) Clay Cleaver Clyburn Cohen Connolly Cooper Correa Costa Courtney Cox (CA) Craig Crist Cuellar Cummings Davids (KS) Davis (CA) Davis, Danny K. Dean DeFazio DeGette DeLauro DelBene Delgado Demings DeSaulnier Deutch Dingell Doggett Doyle, Michael F. Engel Escobar Eshoo Espaillat Evans Fletcher Foster Frankel Fudge Gabbard Gallego Garamendi Garcia (IL) Garcia (TX) Gomez Gonzalez (TX) Green, Al (TX) Grijalva Haaland Harder (CA) Hastings Hayes Heck Higgins (NY) Hill (CA) Himes Horsford Houlahan Hoyer Huffman Jackson Lee Jayapal Jeffries Johnson (GA) Johnson (TX) Kaptur Keating Kelly (IL) Kennedy Khanna Kildee Kilmer Kind Kirkpatrick Krishnamoorthi Kuster (NH) Lamb Langevin Larsen (WA) Larson (CT) Lawrence Lawson (FL) Lee (CA) Lee (NV) Levin (CA) Levin (MI) Lewis Lieu, Ted Lipinski Loebsack Lofgren Lowenthal Lowey Lujan Luria Lynch Malinowski Maloney, Carolyn B. Maloney, Sean Matsui McAdams McBath McCollum McEachin McGovern McNerney Meeks Meng Moore Morelle Moulton Mucarsel-Powell Nadler Napolitano Neal Neguse Norcross O'Halleran Ocasio-Cortez Omar Pallone Panetta Pappas Pascrell Payne Perlmutter Peters Phillips Pingree Pocan Pressley Price (NC) Quigley Raskin Rice (NY) Richmond Rouda Roybal-Allard Ruiz Ruppersberger Rush Ryan Sanchez Sarbanes Scanlon Schakowsky Schiff Schneider Schrader Schrier Scott (VA) Scott, David Serrano Sewell (AL) Shalala Sherman Sires Smith (WA) Soto Speier Stanton Stevens Suozzi Swalwell (CA) Takano Thompson (CA) Thompson (MS) Titus Tlaib Tonko Torres (CA) Torres Small (NM) Trahan Trone Underwood Vargas Veasey Vela Velazquez Visclosky Wasserman Schultz Waters Watson Coleman Welch Wexton Wild Wilson (FL) Yarmuth {time} 1744 So the motion to recommit was rejected. The result of the vote was announced as above recorded. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the passage of the bill. The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that the noes appeared to have it. Recorded Vote Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote. A recorded vote was ordered. The SPEAKER pro tempore. This is a 5-minute vote. The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 272, noes 158, not voting 2, as follows: [Roll No. 514] AYES--272 Adams Aguilar Allred Amash Axne Bacon Barragan Bass Beatty Bera Beyer Bishop (GA) Blumenauer Blunt Rochester Bonamici Bost Boyle, Brendan F. Brindisi Brown (MD) Brownley (CA) Bustos Butterfield Carbajal Cardenas Carson (IN) Cartwright Case Casten (IL) Castor (FL) Castro (TX) Chu, Judy Cicilline Cisneros Clark (MA) Clarke (NY) Clay Cleaver Clyburn Cohen Cole Connolly Cooper Correa Costa Courtney Cox (CA) Craig Crenshaw Crist Crow Cuellar Cummings Cunningham Curtis Davids (KS) Davis (CA) Davis, Danny K. Dean DeFazio DeGette DeLauro DelBene Delgado Demings DeSaulnier Deutch Diaz-Balart Dingell Doggett Doyle, Michael F. Duffy Engel Escobar Eshoo Espaillat Evans Finkenauer Fitzpatrick Fletcher Fortenberry Foster Frankel Fudge Gabbard Gallagher Gallego Garamendi Garcia (IL) Garcia (TX) Golden Gomez Gonzalez (OH) Gonzalez (TX) Gottheimer Graves (GA) Green, Al (TX) Grijalva Haaland Harder (CA) Hartzler Hastings Hayes Heck Herrera Beutler Higgins (LA) Higgins (NY) Hill (AR) Hill (CA) Himes Horn, Kendra S. Horsford Houlahan Hoyer Huffman Hurd (TX) Jackson Lee Jayapal Jeffries Johnson (GA) Johnson (TX) Joyce (OH) Kaptur Katko Keating Kelly (IL) Kennedy Khanna Kildee Kilmer Kim Kind King (NY) Kinzinger Kirkpatrick Krishnamoorthi Kuster (NH) Lamb Langevin Larsen (WA) Larson (CT) Lawrence Lawson (FL) Lee (CA) Lee (NV) Levin (CA) Levin (MI) Lewis Lieu, Ted Lipinski Loebsack Lofgren Lowenthal Lowey Lujan Luria Lynch Malinowski Maloney, Carolyn B. Maloney, Sean Mast Matsui McAdams McBath McCaul McCollum McEachin McGovern McNerney Meeks Meng Moore Morelle Moulton Mucarsel-Powell Murphy Nadler Napolitano Neal Neguse Norcross O'Halleran Ocasio-Cortez Omar Pallone Panetta Pappas Pascrell Payne Perlmutter Peters Peterson Phillips Pingree Pocan Porter Pressley Price (NC) Quigley Raskin Reed Rice (NY) Richmond Rodgers (WA) Rooney (FL) Rose (NY) Rouda Roybal-Allard Ruiz Ruppersberger Rush Sanchez Sarbanes Scanlon Schakowsky Schiff Schneider Schrader Schrier Scott (VA) Scott, Austin Scott, David Serrano Sewell (AL) Shalala Sherman Sherrill Shimkus Sires Slotkin Smith (NJ) Smith (WA) Soto Spanberger Spano Speier Stanton Stefanik Steil Stevens Stivers Suozzi Swalwell (CA) Takano Thompson (CA) Thompson (MS) Thompson (PA) Titus Tlaib Tonko Torres (CA) Torres Small (NM) Trahan Trone Underwood Van Drew Vargas Veasey Vela Velazquez Visclosky Waltz Wasserman Schultz Watson Coleman Welch Wexton Wild Wilson (FL) Womack Woodall Yarmuth Yoho Young NOES--158 Abraham Aderholt Allen Amodei Armstrong Arrington Babin Baird Balderson Banks Barr Bergman Biggs Bilirakis Bishop (UT) Brady Brooks (AL) Brooks (IN) Buchanan Buck Bucshon Budd Burchett Burgess Byrne Calvert Carter (GA) Carter (TX) Chabot Cheney Cline Cloud Collins (GA) Collins (NY) Comer Conaway Cook Crawford Davidson (OH) Davis, Rodney DesJarlais Duncan Dunn Emmer Estes Ferguson Fleischmann Flores Foxx (NC) Fulcher Gaetz Gianforte Gibbs Gohmert Gooden Gosar Granger Graves (LA) Graves (MO) Green (TN) Griffith Grothman Guest Guthrie Hagedorn Harris Hern, Kevin Hice (GA) Holding Hollingsworth Hudson Huizenga Hunter Johnson (LA) Johnson (OH) Johnson (SD) Jordan Joyce (PA) Keller Kelly (MS) Kelly (PA) King (IA) Kustoff (TN) LaHood LaMalfa Lamborn Latta Lesko Long Loudermilk Lucas Luetkemeyer Marchant Marshall Massie McCarthy McClintock McHenry McKinley Meadows Meuser Miller Mitchell Moolenaar Mooney (WV) Mullin Newhouse Norman Nunes Olson Palazzo Palmer Pence Perry Posey Ratcliffe Reschenthaler Rice (SC) Riggleman Roby Roe, David P. Rogers (AL) Rogers (KY) Rose, John W. Rouzer Roy Rutherford Scalise Schweikert Sensenbrenner Simpson Smith (MO) Smith (NE) Smucker Stauber Steube Stewart Taylor Thornberry Timmons Tipton [[Page H7443]] Turner Upton Wagner Walberg Walden Walker Walorski Watkins Weber (TX) Webster (FL) Wenstrup Westerman Williams Wilson (SC) Wittman Wright Zeldin NOT VOTING--2 Ryan Waters {time} 1759 So the bill was passed. The result of the vote was announced as above recorded. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________
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