Relating to A National Emergency Declared By the President on February 2011
Floor Speech
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Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, let's review the facts. There are currently 41 national emergencies that are subject to periodic congressional review, including the emergency declaration related to Libya, which is more than a decade old.
The National Emergencies Act mandates Congress consider joint resolutions terminating national emergencies at least every 6 months. Think about it; every 6 months. That is our job--not the President's; our job.
Yet, Congress has never, not even once, reviewed the legitimacy of the national emergency related to Libya since its declaration by President Obama in 2011, nor has Congress reviewed any of the national emergencies debated today as required by law.
Almost comically, the extended national emergency related to Libya still cites Muammar Qadhafi as a reason for declaration. Mr. Speaker, Muammar Qadhafi has been dead for almost 12 years. You can't make this stuff up.
The situation in Libya poses no extraordinary threat to the national security or foreign policy of the United States. Once again, temporary measures, short-term, punch, terminate.
No group or person in Libya currently poses a threat to our national security. Furthermore, even if there was some hostility, none rises to the level of an unusual and extraordinary threat to national security.
To the extent that there is a desire for certain sanctions, they can be applied without these national emergency declarations in compliance with the Constitution, Federal laws, and national security needs.
Now, that is an important point here. We can adjust these. We can put these in in different places that adhere to our Constitution, our legal aspect, because once again, this is us.
Despite unfounded concerns, sanctioned individuals and entities can be redesignated pursuant to other authorities available to the President, including but not limited to existing national emergencies related to terrorism, Russia, and Iran.
National emergencies are supposed to be rare and brief. In passing the National Emergencies Act in 1976, Congress did not intend for the executive to utilize declarations for decades in order to apply sanctions. That is something Congress can do separately from a national emergency declaration.
In fact, let's look at the history of the National Emergencies Act. It was written to respond to FDR and to Truman in keeping the country in a state of emergency as part of their daily governance. That is what they used the national emergencies for.
Congress allowing these tyrannical authorities to remain in place is recklessly endangering our Republic, checks and balances, and the civil liberties of our constituents.
Under all these extended national emergency declarations, the U.S. Code provides the President with an additional 135 special statutory powers, including: Testing chemical and biological weapons on human beings, including American citizens. Can you say COVID?
Take over or shut down radio stations and U.S.-based internet traffic. Wow. Censorship.
Detail members of our Armed Forces. Waive sanctions on confidentiality provisions related to public health services. Impose crippling and unconstitutional sanctions on American citizens that could freeze their financial assets or restrict anyone from selling them groceries, renting them an apartment, representing them as an attorney, providing dental and medical treatment, and much more--all without any due process supposedly afforded by the Constitution.
Clearly the President thinks he has authority to invoke these special statutory powers absent an executive order explicitly detailing them, which is why he announced his intention to forgive student loans via a press release instead of an executive order.
Oh, but voila. The U.S. Supreme Court said: You can't do that. What does this President do again? He turns around and does it again, shoving it in the Court's face.
Under the extended national emergency declarations, Congress abdicates control over policy and spending and instead transfers unfettered power to the executive branch.
For example, despite repeated bicameral requests, Biden has never provided a single expenditure report related to the COVID-19 national emergency declaration as required periodically by law. Not one.
Now, how can we, Congress, with the explicit power of the purse, allow any President to spend money without requiring a report?
Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 of the United States Constitution says: ``No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.''
Further, 50 U.S.C. 1641(c) clearly states: `` . . . the President shall transmit to Congress, within 90 days after the end of each 6- month period after such declaration, a report on the total expenditures incurred by the United States Government during such 6-month period . . .''
Despite repeated--and I said repeated requests--there have been no expenditure reports to this date allocated in the COVID-19 national emergency, nor was there a final report that was due on July 9.
In fact, what we heard is this President realized that he was behind the gun, and he actually rushed it through on July 7, had the Secretary of Health and Human Services actually try to do it for him. What a shame.
The Constitution clearly provides Congress with the power of the purse, not the President, regardless of supposed emergencies. These emergencies are supposed to be limited, not forever bearing.
We have to come up with a different solution. This is not working. This doesn't work at all. For us particularly, we as Congress, haven't done our job.
Every 6 months--if you hear what I am saying here, every 6 months we should be bringing these up, whether their application is great or fettered or very, very faint, and we should discuss this: What about Libya? What about Yemen? What about these other ones, Iraq and others? By the way, this is regular order. Anything we are detailing here is regular order.
This is almost comical to me. I hate to say it in that light, but when Senator Church put this detail together, he spent a lot of time trying to address this publicly. He tried to get as many people involved in it as he could, and yet, we turn around and do this to him.
We have got to come up with something better, something different, something short-lived, something that actually can keep our eye on the prize.
I don't know whether it is something that we put together in a clearinghouse for known terrorists and whether we utilize that in some way, shape, or form so that we can make sure that we are keeping up to date on all of that, but something has to happen, and it is not in the national emergencies.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of this joint resolution, and I yield back the balance of my time. General Leave
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Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
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