Providing for Consideration of H.R. Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act; Providing for Consideration of H.R. Consequences for Social Security Fraud Act; Providing for Consideration of H.R. No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act; and Providing for Consideration of H.R. Protect Our Communities From Duis Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. BURGESS. Madam Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 980 and ask for its immediate consideration.

The Clerk read the resolution, as follows: H. Res. 980

Resolved, That at any time after adoption of this resolution the Speaker may, pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule XVIII, declare the House resolved into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for consideration of the bill (H.R. 5585) to impose criminal and immigration penalties for intentionally fleeing a pursuing Federal officer while operating a motor vehicle. The first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. General debate shall be confined to the bill and amendments specified in this section and shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees. After general debate the bill shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on the Judiciary now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 118-21 shall be considered as adopted in the House and in the Committee of the Whole. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as the original bill for the purpose of further amendment under the five-minute rule and shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. No further amendment to the bill, as amended, shall be in order except those printed in part A of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution. Each such further amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. All points of order against such further amendments are waived. At the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amendment the Committee shall rise and report the bill, as amended, to the House with such further amendments as may have been adopted. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one motion to recommit.

Sec. 2. Upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the House the bill (H.R. 6678) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide that aliens who have been convicted of or who have committed Social Security fraud are inadmissible and deportable. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on the Judiciary now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 118-23 shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; (2) the further amendment printed in part B of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, if offered by the Member designated in the report, which shall be in order without intervention of any point of order, shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question; and (3) one motion to recommit.

Sec. 3. Upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the House the bill (H.R. 6679) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to aliens who carried out, participated in, planned, financed, supported, or otherwise facilitated the attacks against Israel. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on the Judiciary now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 118-24 shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; (2) the further amendment printed in part C of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, if offered by the Member designated in the report, which shall be in order without intervention of any point of order, shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question; and (3) one motion to recommit.

Sec. 4. Upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the House the bill (H.R. 6976) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide that aliens who have been convicted of or who have committed an offense for driving while intoxicated or impaired are inadmissible and deportable. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on the Judiciary now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 118-22 shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; (2) the further amendment printed in part D of the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, if offered by the Member designated in the report, which shall be in order without intervention of any point of order, shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question; and (3) one motion to recommit.

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Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave
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Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, last night, the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 980, providing for consideration of four measures: H.R. 5585, H.R. 6678, H.R. 6679, and H.R. 6976.

The rule provides for consideration of all four measures under structured rules with 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee of jurisdiction, or their designee. The rule provides one motion to recommit for each measure.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the rule and support of the underlying bills.

Today, we are here to address an ongoing crisis, not a new concept to this body. The word ``crisis'' has been a hard one for my friends on the other side of the aisle to absorb when it comes to our current situation on the southern border.

Let's just put a few things into perspective:

In 2023, Customs and Border Protection encountered over 2\1/2\ million illegal migrants attempting to cross the southern U.S. border.

In December alone, Customs and Border Protection encountered 302,000 illegal migrants--that is just in the month of December--attempting to cross the U.S. southern border, the highest number of unlawful migrant crossings in a single month in recorded history.

In 2023, Customs and Border Protection confiscated almost 230,000 pounds of drugs, including 22,000 pounds of illicit fentanyl, being smuggled across the southern border.

If this doesn't sound like a crisis to you, I don't know what would.

Mr. Speaker, earlier this month, I was at the southern border to witness firsthand the challenges faced by Texans and to hear directly from Border Patrol agents and law enforcement officers who are on the front lines of this crisis.

Magically, either by order of President Biden or by order of the cartels, the Eagle Pass area was completely cleared out that day. If that is possible when Members of Congress are visiting on a certain day, it is possible every single day.

Mr. Speaker, the President has every tool that he needs right now to stop the overwhelming flow of migrants to the border. The proof of this is that immediately upon taking office, President Biden dismantled the immigration policies that were put in place by the Trump administration. He did that by executive order. He can undo them by executive order.

President Biden halted the construction of the border wall, ended Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as the remain in Mexico program, and restarted the dangerous catch and release program with the simple stroke of a pen.

Now the consequences have been stark: record numbers of migrants crossing the border and increasing each month; record numbers of illegal migrants being released into the United States; an open season for drug smugglers, human traffickers, and Mexican cartels; and social support systems stretched to the breaking point, not only in my home State of Texas, but places across the country like New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Denver.

Mr. Speaker, this is not an immigration problem; it is a national security problem. We have a responsibility to make certain that the laws of this land protect Americans and ensure their safety.

Earlier this Congress, we passed H.R. 2, the Secure the Border Act of 2023, to combat illegal migration and ensure operational control over the southern border, but the Senate has refused to even debate or have a vote on the bill.

Today, we take up four additional bills that will help undo the chaos caused by this administration to ensure that law enforcement, particularly the agents of Customs and Border Protection, Federal agents are supported in their mission to keep our communities safe. This means closing loopholes that allow illicit behavior to go without punishment, which is exactly what the following four measures will do.

Last year, Customs and Border Patrol Agent Raul Gonzalez was tragically killed in pursuit of illegal migrants fleeing law enforcement in a motor vehicle. High-speed chases started by those breaking our laws are not uncommon.

In fact, any of us who have been down and visited the border, whether it was several years ago or recently, have been shown the films, the dash cam videos collected by Customs and Border Protection of these very high-risk, high-velocity chases which frequently end up with a crash, with people hurt, or people simply bailing out on the highway and running away.

Currently, fleeing law enforcement in a motor vehicle does not carry immigration consequences for the perpetrators, even in situations that result in the death of an officer, like the one involving Agent Gonzalez.

H.R. 5585, the Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act will change that by adding specific criminal and immigration consequences for individuals who operate motor vehicles while fleeing Border Patrol and law enforcement agents.

The penalties instituted by this bill include prison time and ensure that perpetrators can be deemed inadmissible to this country and deported from the United States.

Preventing deadly accidents that endanger lives is also the focus of H.R. 6976, the Protect Our Communities from DUIs Act.

With a simple turn of a key, an intoxicated driver commits a crime and illegal migrants are no different. Tragically, many of these incidents involve individuals who should not be in the country at all. Illegal migrants who have committed this offense are evaluated under the crimes involving moral turpitude standard, a difficult and complex legal analysis that results in long delays and lengthy legal proceedings.

H.R. 6976 will change this and provide immigration consequences for driving under the influence, rendering illegal migrants who have committed this offense inadmissible to this country and deportable without a lengthy process.

In a similar vein, with identification and fraud on the rise, H.R. 6678, the Consequences for Social Security Fraud Act will ensure that criminal or illegal migrants who commit Social Security and ID fraud can be removed and barred from this country.

Finally, we will take up H.R. 6679, the No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act. In October, the world watched in horror as Hamas, a designated terror organization, committed a vicious and evil attack on Israel. Twelve hundred Israelis, including American citizens, were murdered. Another 240 were taken back to Gaza as hostages where many remain today.

Terrorists who participated in, planned, or otherwise supported the October 7 attacks should not be admissible to the United States, full stop. There is no reason for a member of Hamas to ever be admitted into the United States. H.R. 6679 will make that a reality and ensure that we can prevent these deadly and evil people from ever entering our country, thereby protecting our citizens.

Taken together, eradicating these gaps in our legal recourse will deter criminal activity and ensure that bad actors face appropriate punishment for their crimes.

Mr. Speaker, Republicans have demonstrated that we are committed to governing for the American people and that the American people have spoken. Their message to their elected Representatives is: ``Enough.''

Enough with sending their tax dollars to process migrants that should not be in this country in the first place instead of enforcing the law; enough with putting law enforcement both at the border and across America in harm's way; enough with the fearmongering and lies.

Mr. Speaker, I stand in strong support of the rule and the underlying bills. I urge my fellow Members to support the rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

The gentleman said he wants solutions. There are solutions. The solutions are to undo the executive order the President put in place in his first 5 minutes in office, end catch and release, cease the exploitation of parole authority, reinstate remain in Mexico, expand expedited removal authority, and renew the building of a wall.

Mr. Speaker, it is sheer fantasy that $106 billion will fix this problem. Of course, it won't. The gentleman knows it won't.

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Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Alford) for his comments.

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Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I am ready to close.

Mr. Speaker, the bill being considered over in the Senate is a bill that sets a floor, not a ceiling, a bill that guarantees 2 million people illegally come into this country every year. Mr. Speaker, that is on top of the 1.2 million people that are admitted legally every year--and not to mention the people who come in under the radar. Yes, I am going to be against that bill, and I will be happy to join my friend from Massachusetts in a bipartisan fashion and vote against that legislation because it is bad legislation; not because someone else told me it is bad, but because I know it is bad, and my constituents know it is bad.

When we were down in Eagle Pass, Texas, a few weeks ago with the Speaker of the House, the deputy chief of the Border Patrol spoke to us the first evening down there, and he said, we are faced with a raging flood. And when you are faced with that, it is not that I need bigger buckets, I need someone to turn the water off. So is there a way to turn the water off? And he told us there was.

Simply reinstituting the remain in Mexico policy, the Migrant Protection Protocols that President Biden undid with an executive order on his first day in office, would reduce the flow by 70 percent and would allow our very beleaguered Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement the ability to actually maneuver and do what their job calls for; that is, to protect American citizens.

As it stands right now with the massive ingress of people, all they can do is process people. It becomes a question of throughput. So that is not an answer, and don't pretend that it is because the American people see through that.

I will just address one other thing. I am not running for reelection. I am bulletproof. You can't hurt me. But I support the former President and his approach to border control because I saw it work for the 4 years he was in office. He was the best President of the 21st century, and, yes, I would like to see him back in office; not because someone told me, but my constituents support the type of leadership that he provided for those 4 years.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, this country is being invaded at the southern border--invaded to the extent that Governor Greg Abbott in my home State of Texas has officially declared an invasion. This administration has done nothing to help, nothing to help Texas, and has, instead, decided to take Texas to court to sue Texas just for trying to get the smallest bit of relief for its citizens and for its law enforcement officers.

The Republican majority has, once again, demonstrated that our agenda will be devoted to improving the lives of American citizens. Our governing majority will continue to focus on the issues that matter most to the American people: rising energy costs, sky-high inflation, rampant crime, and, yes, fixing our porous southern border.

These are issues that the American voters rightfully demand their elected Representatives to address. The Republican majority is committed to solving the many crises that this President and the minority have inflicted on our Nation.

Today, we begin the most basic duties of stopping and punishing criminals who come across our southern border illegally.

I would like to thank Representative Juan Ciscomani from Arizona; Representative Tom McClintock from California, with whom I serve on the Budget Committee; and Representative Barry Moore from Alabama, for their leadership on these important pieces of legislation.

I, again, stand in strong support of the rule and the underlying bills, and I urge my fellow Members to support the rule.

The material previously referred to by Mr. McGovern is as follows:

An Amendment to H. Res. 980 Offered By Mr. McGovern of Massachusetts

At the end of the resolution, add the following:

Sec. 5. Immediately upon adoption of this resolution, the House shall proceed to the consideration in the House of the bill (H.R. 16) to authorize the cancellation of removal and adjustment of status of certain aliens, and for other purposes. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. The bill shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and on any amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; and (2) one motion to recommit.

Sec. 6. Clause 1(c) of rule XIX shall not apply to the consideration of H.R. 16.
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