“The passage of this omnibus strikes a new low point in an already shameful 117th Congress. Aside from the trillions of dollars in spending that we do not have, the process by which this bill was considered is the culmination of a broken institution led by one-party Democrat rule. For the first time in history, a bill in the House was passed without a physical quorum present – meaning more people voted from home than in the House Chamber. 226 Members of the House voted by proxy rather than show up to vote in person. Not only will the contents of this bill damage our country, but the fact that it was allowed to pass with blatant disregard to Article I, Section 5 of our Constitution will forever stain this body.

“In just eleven days, the new House Republican majority will change the direction of our country. We will fight to pull back as many devastating provisions as possible, not only in this bill but in many other previous laws that passed in this Congress. And we will also return this House back to a functioning constitutional body by repealing proxy voting once and for all, while pursuing legitimate challenges to the legality in which the Democrat Congress distorted the business and institutional precedents of the House.”

The post Leader McCarthy’s Statement on the Omnibus appeared first on House Republican Leader.

Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy delivered floor remarks to highlight why this bill is bad policy, bad process, and bad for America.

Full remarks as prepared included below and the Leader’s speech can be viewed here.

“We are two days away from Christmas.

“The Christmas Season is the season of giving.

“But in Congress, it appears the season of giving will line the pockets of Democrat special interests and stick hard-working Americans with the tab.

“That’s what this omnibus does.

“Guess how many pages it is? 4,155 of pet projects, pork, and progressive priorities.

“Guess how much it costs? $2 trillion that we don’t have.

“Guess who wrote it? Two retiring Senators who won’t face accountability from voters again.

“Guess when it was made public? In the dead of night – at 2 am on the Tuesday before Christmas.

“This monstrosity is one of the most shameful acts I have ever seen in this body.

“The country is tired of it.

“How do I know? They told us last month.

“They chose a new direction for our country by electing a House Republican majority for the 118th Congress, which begins in 11 days.

“11 days!

“This current debate isn’t just about bad policy – it’s a slap in the face to every American that voted. If you want to talk about threats to democracy – look no further than to what’s happening on this floor today.

“Which raises the question: What – exactly – are we voting on?

“I guarantee not a single member that will vote ‘yes’ can tell you everything that is in it because no one has had time to read it.

“Democrats and some Senate Republicans hope you won’t notice what’s in the bill – but we won’t let them rob our future with no transparency, no accountability, and no restraint.

“Here are some of the worst parts of this omnibus:

“First – to state the obvious, the omnibus spends too much, increasing the deficit and fueling even more inflation.

“This bill increases baseline spending by $134 billion.

“Put another way, it adds another $1.5 trillion over ten years to the national debt at a time when we are already drowning in $31 trillion in debt.

“And what kind of projects are such high priorities that we just have to increase spending by so much? Left-wing pet projects.

“Americans are struggling under the weight of inflation caused by Democrats’ reckless spending. But Democrats want to add more debt and inflict more economic pain against you and your family.

“Our economy is already in a dire condition, and passing this omnibus supercharges that disaster.

“Inflation is higher today than it was 11 months ago when President Biden said it had ‘peaked’. Families are paying almost $400 more per month than a year ago.

“Last month, our deficit was nearly $250 billion, a record for the month of November. This was fueled by a 55 percent increase in our interest payments.

“Meanwhile, personal credit card debt exploded by almost $40 billion in Q3, a record for Q3.

“Inflation is the economy’s number one problem. The Federal Reserve gets it, which is why it is raising rates.

“But Democrats still don’t, and this bill will only put more pressure on the Fed and working families.

“Americans have had enough. That’s why millions voted last month to end Democrats’ one-party rule, retire Speaker Pelosi, and usher in a new House Republican majority that won’t waste your hard-earned tax dollars or pass massive government spending bills that cause more inflation and contribute to higher prices.

“Second – the omnibus spending bill intensifies the crisis at our Southern border.

“Since taking office, President Biden’s open border policies have caused the worst border crisis in American history.

“On this administration’s watch, record numbers of illegal border crossings, deadly drugs, and even terrorism suspects have come into our country.

“Enough fentanyl has crossed the southern border to kill every American 10 times over. This is a weapon of mass destruction that Mexican drug cartels are smuggling into our country.

“The fentanyl crisis has turned every community in America into a border community. As families gather for the holidays – the pain and suffering they will face from their children or loved ones who have lost their lives to fentanyl will be seared into the holiday celebration forever.

“This is the heartbreaking reality of Biden’s open border crisis.

“And what does this bill do about it? Nothing.

“This bill fails to fund border security measures, which have been erased by the Biden administration.

“It includes hundreds of millions of dollars to somehow ‘manage’ the crisis Biden created by choice, but reduces funds that would actually secure the border.

“For example, this bill provides for more migrant shelter services and reduces the number of ICE detention beds. This facilitates the eventual release of even more migrants all across the country.

“Meanwhile, this disastrous bill reduces funding for border technology that would prevent more illegal crossings in the first place.

“This bill funds 300 additional Border Patrol agents when there are well over 3,000 illegal border crossings every single day – just in El Paso.

“But the worst part might be that this bill sets aside $410 million for border security in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia, and Oman. Radical Democrats will fund walls and technology to protect the Middle East but not McAllen, Texas.

“It’s a disgrace.

“If this lame-duck, America Last monstrosity is allowed to pass, the Biden border crisis will get so much worse.

“Third – this omnibus would continue to fully fund the IRS – including the 87,000 new agents – and does nothing to protect you, your family, or your business from being targeted by the government.

“Remember, earlier this year the Democrats funded 87,000 new IRS agents and approved $85 billion to spy on Americans spending $600 or more.

“After all we have seen from the Twitter Files — the collusion between Big Tech, the FBI, and the Intelligence Community – it’s clear that instead of focusing on actual threats to our country and people – they colluded with private companies – by way of personnel and direct payments – to shut down speech.

“Not only is that wrong – it is illegal.

“It is time Congress conducted real oversight and accountability. In 11 days, House Republicans will begin to do just that by using the power of the purse and the power of the subpoena.

“But this bill would give the Biden administration a free pass.

“This bill provides the FBI with $375 million for a new headquarters and over $11 billion in funding.

“Why would Congress reward the FBI, despite its appalling attack on our freedom of speech?

“Fourth – Buried in the omnibus is even more money for woke-ism in the government and military.

“The woke Left wants to further divide Americans against each other based on race, sex, and background.

“They want to teach our kids that America is inherently bad and that you should distrust and hate your fellow Americans.

“This bill does nothing to prevent toxic woke ideology from being taught in our children’s classrooms.

“Worse, this bill funds woke programs throughout the government and around the world, including:

“$8.6 million for ‘gender advisor programs’ at the Pentagon.

“$200 million for a Gender Equity Fund and gender programs in Pakistan.

“$575 million for ‘family planning’ in areas where population growth ‘threatens biodiversity.’

“$4 million for ‘shared equity housing models’

“Half a million dollars for ‘antiracist’ training from the Equity Institute

“These types of woke handouts should not be funded by taxpayers.

“They go against everything we stand for as Americans.

“Most Americans share Dr. Martin Luther King’s belief that the content of character matters more than the color of your skin.

“For all the reasons I laid out, this $2 trillion, 4,155-page omnibus is a train wreck.

“It is jam-packed with woke-ism, Washington special interest deals, and wasteful spending that will mean more crushing debt for 330 million Americans and generations to come.

“It will make the border worse.

“It will make inflation worse.

“It will make the economy worse.

“It will make the government worse.

“The American people are probably asking themselves, how did we get into this mess?

“I’ll tell you how: Democrats failed to do their job.

“During the last year, Democrats controlled the House, the Senate, and the presidency, and yet they failed to do their most basic task.

“Senate Democrats passed zero appropriations bills out of their committee.

“Senate Democrats passed zero appropriations bills off the floor.

“They didn’t do a damn thing. They went 0 for 12!

“Instead of following the law and funding the government by September 30, they did what they do best – they created a crisis and then didn’t let it go to waste.

“Remember when Speaker Pelosi said about Obamacare, ‘you have to pass it to find out what’s in it?’

“This is exactly the same. They waited until the last minute in a lame duck Congress to dump a 4,000-page, $2 trillion bill into the laps of the American people.

“Did we have time to read the bill? No.

“Did we have time to debate the bill? No.

“Did we mark up the bill? No.

“But the Senate passed it anyway, and now they are rushing home to leave the American people with the bill.

“Americans are tired of this kind of governing.

“I will make you this promise: this will be the last time Congress disgraces itself like this again.

“In 11 days the new House Republican majority takes over. And in 11 days this same old business as usual approach is over.

“Republicans will do what the Democrats have failed to do: We will pass legislation on time – and we will do it in an open and transparent manner.

“And we won’t even think about a negotiation with the Senate until they do their work.

“The days of negotiating against ourselves are over.

“We are going to reclaim this body’s integrity in service to the American people after this institution covers itself in disgrace one last time under Democrats one-party rule.

“A new direction is coming. In 11 days, Republicans will deliver it.

“Vote no on the omnibus.”

The post McCarthy: This Omnibus is a “Slap in the Face of Every American” appeared first on House Republican Leader.

House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23), Whip Steve Scalise (LA-01), Oversight Ranking Member James Comer (KY-01), Energy and Commerce Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05), and HPSCI Ranking Member Mike Turner (OH-10) released the following statement on the report:

“Every person in America has been directly or indirectly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Lives were taken. Livelihoods destroyed. The mismanagement of the response to COVID-19 has led to societal crises like massive education loss for children, drug overdoses across communities, and a stark rise in mental health issues.

“Americans are owed answers about the origins of COVID-19 and future health threats, and they deserve leaders in Washington who remain steadfast in finding the truth.

“Today’s HPSCI report led by Rep. Wenstrup marks significant progress toward that objective. The findings identify more culpability from the Chinese Communist Party, highlight the failures of the Intelligence Community to share pertinent information with the American public and their authorized representatives, and give more credibility to the lab leak theory – which many government officials, Big Tech platforms, and media outlets were quick to label a ‘conspiracy theory.’

“A Republican majority will continue this critical work across all committees of jurisdiction and we commit to finding the facts on a pandemic that negatively impacted millions of American families. By doing so, our policies going forward will strive to ensure that our country is never vulnerable to these threats in the same way again.”

Full report is available here.

Highlights of the report included below:

• Investigation revealed serious shortcomings with both the classified and declassified versions of the Intelligence Community’s (IC) Updated Assessment on COVID-19 Origins
• The IC withheld key information from the public in the declassified version of its Updated Assessment, information that could have been shared without damaging national security. These omissions likely skewed the public’s understanding of key issues
• The Committee believes the IC downplayed important information relating to the possible links between COVID-19 and China’s bioweapons research based in part on input from outside experts
• Findings conclude that there are indications that SARS-CoV-2 may have been tied to China’s biological weapons research program and spilled over to the human population during a lab-related incident at the Wuhan Institute of Virology
• The Committee will seek to declassify the classified version of their report in the next Congress. In addition, the Committee plans to explore all means at its disposal to require the IC to fully cooperate and comply until their requests are met with adequate information.

The post Americans Deserve Transparency on the Origins of COVID-19 appeared first on House Republican Leader.

Highlights from their remarks are available below or you may watch online here.

Leader McCarthy (CA-23): “This omnibus represents Biden’s destructive agenda – exactly what the new House Republican majority will fight tooth-and-nail against if Republicans hold the line and wait twenty days… House Republicans refuse to support this bill and the dysfunction that brought us to this point. Taxpayers deserve accountability now.”

Whip Scalise (LA-01): “We need to change the way that Washington does business… The Democrat House, the Democrat Senate, and the Democrat White House had all year to get funding taken care of by September 30th — and of course, they blew through that deadline.”

Chair Stefanik (NY-21): “The lame-duck Democrats have spent the last two years running up the tab on the backs of hardworking American families… On day one in the majority, we will start reigning in the Biden administration and delivering on our Commitment to America.”

Ranking Member Granger (TX-12): “House Republicans will work toward a spending agreement that cuts wasteful spending, reduces inflation, and prioritizes border security and national defense.”

Ranking Member Smith (MO-08): “In the first twenty months of Joe Biden, he has added more than ten trillion dollars in new spending. That’s a record for any President in the first twenty months in the history of the United States.”

Ranking Member Turner (OH-10): “This omnibus represents continued out-of-control spending in Washington… I will oppose this bill and encourage others to do so because of what it does to American families and their economic security.”

The post McCarthy: “In 20 Days, Democrats’ Business as Usual Approach is Over” appeared first on House Republican Leader.

Yesterday, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23) announced that Rep. Mike Gallagher (WI-08) will chair the China Select Committee.

In their op-ed below, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy and Rep. Mike Gallagher build upon the work of the China Task Force and lay out their vision for the China Select Committee under a Republican majority in the House.

The greatest threat to the United States is the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). America spent decades pursuing policies that welcomed China into the international system. But since then, instead of embracing freedom or becoming a responsible stakeholder, Beijing has flouted international norms while exporting totalitarianism, aggression, and ideological control.

To win the new Cold War, we must respond to Chinese aggression with tough policies to strengthen our economy, rebuild our supply chains, speak out for human rights, stand against military aggression, and end the theft of Americans’ personal information, intellectual property, and jobs. We must recognize that China’s “peaceful rise” was pure fiction and finally confront the CCP with the urgency the threat demands. To do that, House Republicans will establish a Select Committee on China in the new Congress.

Here’s the good news: when the threat is dire, Americans have a proud history of coming together. There is bipartisan consensus that the era of trusting Communist China is over. Two years ago, House Republicans proposed to create a bipartisan China Task Force. Sadly, Democrats refused to participate, but the Task Force released a comprehensive blueprint built on bipartisan proposals on how to confront the CCP. The establishment of the Select Committee on China will build on the work first laid out by that China Task Force, and it will do it in a bipartisan way.

The first step is to restore our supply chains and end critical economic dependencies on China. In 2021, the U.S. imported a quarter of its antibiotics from China. India, a key producer of generic drugs, depends on China for 80% of the underlying active pharmaceutical ingredients–demonstrating that even ostensibly friendly sources of lifesaving drugs oftentimes ultimately trace back to China. Meanwhile, in 2019, approximately 90% of the world’s rare earth metals, alloys, and permanent magnets were produced in China. The Select Committee will expose our dangerous dependence on China and advance policies to build secure sources for critical supply chains, either in the United States or in partnership with like-minded allies. It will also work to prevent trillions of American dollars and millions of American retirees from financing Communist genocide and military modernization by developing policies to prohibit state and local pension funds—the same entities evangelizing for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investments—from investing in China. Our goal will be to promote overwhelming economic superiority. When we have a strong economy, we are safer.

Confronting China is also about deterring aggression on the world stage, both military and economic. Taiwan and other allies increasingly find themselves in the crosshairs of military aggression by the CCP. Meanwhile, the CCP advances its Belt and Road Initiative to ensnare other countries into its debt trap diplomacy that only benefits the CCP. Further, the CCP engages in unfair trade practices and actively seeks to steal intellectual property from the United States and others. We cannot afford to misread the CCP’s intentions. The Select Committee will make the urgent case for aiding Taiwan in its self-defense and build relationships with our other Indo-Pacific allies. As China uses its growing economy to modernize its military, we must also develop new weapons and stockpiles to project power, preserve our global influence, and protect our forces, including in space and cyberspace. Further, we will look at how the United States and freedom-loving countries can work together to push viable alternatives to the Belt and Road Initiative. The time-tested formula for victory—while deterring war— as President Reagan proved, is peace through strength.

In addition, winning the new Cold War with China requires defending our domestic institutions. The Select Committee will demonstrate how the CCP uses “United Front Work” and authoritarian tactics to cultivate foreign elites and silence criticism of CCP atrocities, as well as shed light on ongoing CCP interference and influence campaigns in a way the American public can easily understand. The Select Committee will expose how the CCP uses lobbying at the local, state, and federal level to advance CCP dogma against our interests and provide recommendations for fixing our weak lobbying laws.

Finally, the Select Committee will investigate the CCP’s attempts at infiltrating our academic institutions and the rise and proliferation of Confucius Institutes in the United States as organs of the CCP, as well as how the CCP or affiliated entities purchases land in the United States to the detriment of our national and economic security We also will seek to shine a light on the CCP’s security services operating in the United States, especially how the CCP attempts to intimidate and spy on Chinese citizens and Americans here in the United States. In doing all this, the Select Committee will take care to distinguish between the Chinese people and the regime that oppresses them.

In the aftermath of the 20th Party Congress earlier this fall, General Secretary Xi Jinping is more emboldened than ever to pursue his aggressive agenda aimed at the pilfering of the American economy, the destruction of our international leadership, and the subversion of our institutions. At the same time, recent large-scale anti-regime protests reveal the fundamental insecurity of Xi’s authoritarian rule. Through the Select Committee on China, the House will stand with all those in China oppressed by the regime while advancing policies that both deter war this decade and set the long-term path for victory in this new Cold War.

The post Leader McCarthy and Rep. Mike Gallagher in Fox News Op-Ed: We’re in a Cold War with China. Here’s How We Win It. appeared first on House Republican Leader.

Leader McCarthy released the following statement on the selection:

“The Chinese Communist Party is the greatest geopolitical threat of our lifetime. We need a whole-of-government approach that will build on the efforts of the Republican-led China Task Force and ensure America is prepared to tackle the economic and security challenges posed by the CCP. That is why under a Republican majority, I will establish a Select Committee on China.

“To effectively lead this effort, we need someone at the helm who understands the complexities of this generational challenge. As a Member who served in uniform as a Marine Counterintelligence officer and has dedicated his time in Congress to understanding, educating, and defending America from the threat the CCP poses, Mike Gallagher is exceptionally qualified and is the right person to lead and advance this important agenda at this vital moment.”  

The post Leader McCarthy Announces Rep. Mike Gallagher as Chairman of the China Select Committee appeared first on House Republican Leader.

“The end of President Biden’s military COVID vaccine mandate is a victory for our military and for common sense. Last week, I told the president directly: it’s time to end the COVID vaccine mandate and rehire our service members.

“While I applaud the end of this onerous mandate — the Biden administration must go further. Unfortunately, the mandate has already had negative consequences for our military:

“The Army and Navy missed their 2022 recruitment goals by thousands of service members. And, at the direction of the Biden administration, the Defense Department discharged 3,300 Marines, 1,800 soldiers, 1,800 sailors, and 900 airmen simply based on their personal decision to not take the COVID vaccine. This decision was detrimental to the ranks, and there is no doubt it put our national security at risk.

“These heroes deserve justice now that the mandate is no more. The Biden administration must correct service records and not stand in the way of re-enlisting any service member discharged simply for not taking the COVID vaccine.

“Make no mistake: this is a win for our military. But in 28 days the real work begins – the new House Republican majority will work to finally hold the Biden administration accountable and assist the men and women in uniform who were unfairly targeted by this Administration.”

The post The End of President Biden’s Military COVID Vaccine Mandate appeared first on House Republican Leader.

Our majority will have the obligation and authority to conduct rigorous oversight of the federal government, including using the government’s vast power to attempt to coerce private businesses to act against the freedoms and security of our citizens. 

We will leave no stone unturned in order to deliver the accountability the American people deserve. Too many decision points in the government are made by agency heads and implemented by unelected and unconfirmed government actors – all of whom need to be accountable to the American people. And with gavels and subpoena authority in the upcoming Congress, we will use interviews, subpoenas, depositions, and hearings to expose the truth.

Below are some of the major areas of oversight our majority will pursue. These areas of concern are by no means exhaustive but because of our preparation – they will be our primary focus so that in 28 days, there will be accountability.

Department of Homeland Security and our Open Border Crisis

President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas are directly responsible for an open border crisis unprecedented in American history. Even worse, the Biden administration refuses to act and refuses to implement proven solutions that would secure the border. From deadly drugs such as fentanyl to over one hundred terrorism suspects crossing into our country, the border crisis has become a national security catastrophe. House Republicans will work to stop Biden’s assault on our laws, our borders, and our border agents. We will use the power of the purse and the power of the subpoena. Additionally, as Leader McCarthy has said, we will investigate every order, every action, and every failure to determine whether to begin an impeachment inquiry against Secretary Mayorkas. We will investigate:

• Failure to protect the border and defend our sovereignty
• Secretary Mayorkas’ sworn testimony that the southern border is “secure”
• Formation of the Disinformation Governance Board
• False allegations that border agents “whipped” migrants in Del Rio, Texas
• Decline in ICE enforcement and deportations
• Impact of drug trafficking on communities across the country
• Impact of illegal immigration on federal lands

Big Tech and the Silencing of Americans’ Free Speech

Fundamental American rights are being threatened by the bias of Big Tech companies and their “special relationship” with government officials. We’ve seen Americans silenced, the truth censored, and viewpoints suppressed. House Republicans have a duty to ensure our fundamental freedoms prevail. We will investigate:

• Coordination and collusion with the Federal Government and intelligence officials to silence speech
• Twitter, Facebook, and Google censoring information and suppressing Free Speech
• TikTok’s threat to national security and Paypal’s debanking efforts

China

In 2011, then-Vice President Joe Biden said, “[a] rising China is a positive development.” Today, the Communist Party of China is indeed rising – but it is anything but a positive development for America’s national security or economic security. House Republicans will focus on the threats we face from a rising China and how to protect and strengthen America for the next century.  

We will stand up a China Select Committee to investigate and provide policy recommendations on how the U.S. can win the economic and technological competition within the CCP. With respect to the CCP, we will investigate: 

• Its role as supplier and producer of fentanyl and its failure to stop or control what is coming out of China
• Deceptive trade practices
• Supply chain risks and vulnerabilities
• Acquisition of agricultural land in America
• Pursuit of advanced technologies at the expense of U.S. intellectual property
• Exploiting U.S. investment to power the CCP national security state
• Advancing its doctrine in U.S. academic institutions
• Malign influence, coercion, and lobbying efforts at the state, local and federal level to advance their agenda
• Spread of CCP propaganda and its covert threat inside the U.S.

Security

Our national security must be vigorously defended, but too often we’ve seen the Biden administration put politics ahead of national security – endangering the safety and well-being of all Americans. House Republicans have a duty to ensure the government is protecting its citizens and not selling them out to special interests in the name of woke identity politics. We will investigate:

• TikTok ongoing negotiations with the Biden Administration’s CFIUS that could allow data mining by the CCP
• Military leadership’s woke priorities and allocation of resources damaging our national readiness
• Use of military resources to publicly criticize American citizens
• Audit of defense spending and foreign aid; including but not limited to Ukraine aid
• Election integrity
• Security failures and ongoing vulnerabilities in the U.S. Capitol

COVID Origins 

House Democrats never held a hearing on the origins of the coronavirus – even after they and liberal leaders forced failed lockdowns and mandates on Americans across the country. House Republicans will investigate where COVID originated, how it initially spread, and who potentially played a role in the virus’ creation. We will investigate:

• CCP’s role in the spread of COVID and withholding information from the world
• To what extent the American taxpayers have funded gain of function research in China
• The collusion within NIH to discredit the “lab leak” theory and push natural occurrence against gathered data and evidence.

Hunter Biden

Hunter Biden’s laptop connects President Joe Biden to his son’s corrupt foreign business dealings, and House Republicans will investigate to what extent this connection impacts our national security – including whether President Biden has acted in our nation’s best interest or his own family’s self-interest. We will investigate:

• Impact of Hunter Biden’s foreign business deals on U.S. national security interests
• Influence peddling and selling access to hostile foreign powers
• Connection between the CCP purchasing American natural gas and the Biden family receiving millions of dollars from a Chinese business with close ties to the CCP 

Disastrous Afghanistan Withdrawal

President Biden’s disastrous and chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan left the entire country – and indeed the world – in shock and disbelief. Worse, the withdrawal resulted in 13 new Gold Star families as well as horrific images that stunned the entire world. House Republicans perhaps have no higher responsibility than to investigate the withdrawal, learn exactly what went so wrong and why, assess the consequences for the future of our national security, and prevent such scenes from ever happening again. We will investigate:

• Decision-making process that led to the chaotic withdrawal, including the decision to abandon Bagram Air Base
• Intelligence failures that led President Biden to conclude the Taliban would not overrun Kabul so quickly
• Consequences of abandoning an unknown number of American citizens in Afghanistan
• Impact of the Taliban seizure of military equipment left behind in Afghanistan 
• Impact on over-the-horizon counter-terrorism capabilities
• Long-term geopolitical ramifications and their impact on U.S. national security

Washington Spending

Democrats’ reckless multi-trillion dollar spending spree has led to dire consequences for our economy – and for the budget of every American family. Massive spending has predictably led to higher prices while Democrats have not used their majority for any accountability or oversight of the funds. House Republicans will get answers for the American people about how taxpayer money is being spent. There have been no oversight hearings forcing the administration to account for the monies that Congress – through the power of the purse – provided to help the country navigate the pandemic. Every dollar must be accounted for and all spending must be transparent and justified.  

• $1.9 trillion in ARPA funding
• $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
• $740 billion in “Inflation Reduction Act” funding 
  • Including $3 billion for implementation of HHS’ drug pricing plan
• Wasteful PPP fraud and the Biden administration’s failure to prosecute fraud and prioritize repayment of the loans, including $80M to planned parenthood that the SBA has demanded by repaid.
• CHIPS – the language of bill provides significant grants that Congress must approve and Congress must vigilantly monitor how past grants and allocations are spent to prioritize American excellence rather than feeding the corporate trough 
• $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

DOJ / FBI

The Biden administration has replaced equal justice under the law with partisan politics above all else. Prosecutors should not have a political bias, and the attorney general should not be a partisan activist. House Republicans will investigate the investigators to tip the scales of justice back into balance.

• School board interference with Biden’s DOJ and targeting parents as “domestic terrorists”
• Politicization of the FBI to target political opponents 
• Prioritizing investigating alleged “domestic terrorists” over child sex trafficking and padding numbers of actual domestic terrorism to achieve political messaging
• Targeting of American veterans as domestic threats
• DOJ’s misuse of prosecutorial discretion in ignoring violence and targeting political opponents 
• FBI’s broad use of geo-fencing in data collection raising constitutional concerns related to fourth amendment protections

Education & Woke Ideology

Schools should educate not indoctrinate. Unfortunately, the classroom has become a battlefield where competing political ideologies, gender theories, and junk science wage war against the well-being of children across the country. Worse, the Biden administration has promoted harmful policies pushed by the far-left teachers unions that have restricted learning and funded radical curriculums that poison the minds of children across America. Students should be learning in the classroom – not over Zoom. Schools should focus on raising test scores. House Republicans are committed to empowering parents and ensuring the best education possible for America’s children.

• Federal government’s involvement in promoting Critical Race Theory and other woke educational doctrines.
• Lack of scientific justifications for school closures, mask mandates in school, and COVID vaccine mandates for young children
• Legality of the Biden administration’s student loan debt transfer plan
• The positive effectiveness of Republicans’ Tax Cuts and Jobs Act endowment tax, including its impact on the rising cost of education
• Department of Education attempt to erase scientific definitions of gender
• Department of Health and Human Services promoting transgender surgeries and puberty blockers as necessary for children’s health without evidence
• Violations of religious liberty and forcing doctors and providers from performing services that violate their conscience

Energy Production & American Industry

President Biden put America last on his first day in office by ending the Keystone XL pipeline and killing thousands of energy jobs. American energy dominance and affordable prices should be the top priority. Instead Democrat policies have sold out American energy security and American industry, leaving America dependent on energy from abroad and vulnerable to the whims of dictators from around the world.

• Administration’s awareness and disregard that their policies would lead to energy price spikes
• Decision points surrounding canceling permits that resulted in in job losses and energy insecurity
• ESG regulations on American investment and business operations
• Environmental NGOs’ collusion with Russia and China to hurt American Energy
• Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) royalty rate scheme
• Department of Energy’s electric vehicle component grants

IRS Politicization & Abuse  

The Democrats have politicized the IRS at every turn – from the Lois Lerner scandal where they intentionally targeted conservative leaning nonprofit organizations in an attempt to silence political speech they disagreed with, to grossly abusing 26 USC 6103, and failing to enforce confidentiality requirements of American citizens’ taxes. Stopping the abuse of power of the IRS is mandatory to ensure the return of public trust. 

• 87,000 new IRS Agents and monitoring of Americans’ bank accounts 
• Unlawful leaks of private taxpayer data to media outlets
• Abuse of 6103 authority – handing over private tax information – without prosecution

Breaking the Swamp’s Bureaucracy

Across the federal government, Executive Branch agencies have taken the will of the people, as expressed through Congress, and ignored basic separation of powers principles to attempt to legislate and pass laws through the executive branch agencies. In the 118th Congress, the unelected and unconfirmed bureaucrats will be forced to answer for the damage they are doing every day to this great nation. 

• Reasserting Article 1 priorities – demanding statutory language for agency regulations
• West Virginia v. EPA follow-up with each agency, as the Supreme Court has provided a roadmap to reassert the major questions doctrine and force agencies to provide actual statutory language for rulemaking. 
• Removal of gender-identifying words in agency regulations
• Federal government’s remote workforce limitations
• Ethics compliance across the federal government

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Since then, 107 terror suspects have been apprehended crossing our southern border and a record number of Americans have died from drug overdoses – the main driver being fentanyl.

Today, Leader McCarthy and House Republicans came to the border to express their gratitude to the agents of the United States Border Patrol, to thank the agents for doing all that they can  – and to tell Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that enough is enough.

In 42 days, House Republicans officially end one-party rule and hold those responsible for the disaster at the border accountable.

In 42 days, House Republicans, led by Ranking Members James Comer and Jim Jordan, will investigate every order, every action, and every failure to determine whether to begin an impeachment inquiry into Secretary Mayorkas.

In 42 days, the Biden administration will once again be accountable to the American people.

That’s the House Republican Commitment to America.

You may watch the press conference online here or by clicking the graphic below.

Highlights of Members remarks are available below.

Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23): “This is why, today, I am calling on [Secretary Mayorkas] to resign. He cannot, and must not, remain in that position. If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action, and every failure to determine whether we can begin an impeachment inquiry.”

Rep. Brian Babin (TX-36): “Anyone paying attention at all can see that Joe Biden is responsible for the worst border crisis in the history of the country – no matter how many times Secretary Mayorkas lies about it, under oath, we know that the border is simply not secure.”

Rep. Dan Crenshaw (TX-02): “Citizens in El Paso cannot sleep at night because Biden and his administration will not secure the border.  This past October, we had more crossings by people on the suspected terror watchlist than we did in 2016, 2017, and 2018 – combined.”

Rep. Mark Green (TN-07):  “We’re here to shine a light on the destruction being wrought on all our states because Joe Biden has turned every state into a border state. We’re here to shine a light on the destruction caused on American families by the cartels’ poisoning drugs.” 

Rep. Kat Cammack (FL-03): “Twelve miles of border, here in El Paso, are being left open. There is not a single agent on the line. I know that because we just talked to the agents… This is a real problem and its being ignored by Joe Biden and Alejandro Mayorkas.”

Rep. Tony Gonzales (TX-23): “It’s no longer migrants dying at the border, it’s Americans. And those Americans are wearing green uniforms… I urge the Biden administration to work with House Republican leadership to secure this border.”

Rep. August Pfluger (TX-11): “The system is flashing red right now… we have talked to dozens of border patrol agents today, not a single agent today has claimed that the border is secure. In fact, they say it is the most open it has been in their entire career.”

The post Enough is Enough appeared first on House Republican Leader.

Letters from the Republicans on the House Committee on the Judiciary are below.

Letter to White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain requesting testimony from certain White House staff available here.

Letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas requesting testimony from certain Homeland Security officials available here.

Letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting testimony from certain Department of Justice officials available here.

Letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray requesting testimony from certain officials in the FBI available here.

Letter to Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona requesting testimony from certain officials in the Department of Education available here.

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