The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“UNLEASH AMERICAN ENERGY INDEPENDENCE” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security was published in the in the House section section on pages H6908-H6913 on July 20.
The Department was built out of more than 20 agencies in 2002. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lower taxes and boosting federal efficiency, argued the Department is burdened with "unneeded bureaucracy" which could be handled by other departments or standalone operations.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
UNLEASH AMERICAN ENERGY INDEPENDENCE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 4, 2021, the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
General Leave
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Louisiana?
There was no objection.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, the recent Supreme Court term has come to an end and the Court's decision has sent Washington Democrats into a tailspin.
Members of this body have called to abolish the Supreme Court--and by the way, some of those very same Members have also called to expand the Supreme Court, so we are not really sure which one they are committed to.
Just yesterday, Members of this body were pretending to be handcuffed over their support for taxpayer-funded abortion on demand until birth. Washington Democrats are making excuses for the outright harassment of the Supreme Court Justices, their families, their children, and even the assassination attempt on the life of Justice Kavanaugh.
Washington Democrats are silent on attacks against pro-life pregnancy care centers across this country. Some have even called for these centers to be shut down all across the Nation. It is appalling. It is unhinged. Why would anyone want to shut down pregnancy centers that are designed to help struggling mothers in their time of need? But that is where we are.
Why all the hysterics though? My constituents are really curious about this. Why are they so animated right now? Why do they want to tear this institution to the ground?
Well, here is the simple reason, because the Supreme Court has made some very thoughtful constitutionally based decisions in this term.
They correctly said, for example, that a football coach was exercising his First Amendment rights when he privately prayed on the 50-yard line.
The Supreme Court correctly said that citizens don't have to ask the government for permission to exercise their fundamental rights to keep and bear arms.
The Supreme Court correctly said that if Congress wants to address climate change, then Congress has to legislate on that issue instead of just outsourcing that work to unelected bureaucrats.
Because the Supreme Court correctly said that elected Representatives of the people may again be allowed to place restrictions on the killing of innocent unborn children.
That is why they are motivated. That is why they are so unhinged. That is why they want to tear the institution to the ground.
I guess we shouldn't be surprised by all of this. We are, after all, only a couple of months removed from Senator Schumer's infamous, dangerous, unhinged rant on the steps of the Supreme Court itself. He called out Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh by name, and he said, Hey, we are going to release the whirlwind on you.
Well, it happened. And it is clear what is happening here. Democrats are doing anything and everything they can to try to use these obvious and straightforward Supreme Court decisions to stoke fear and change the subject before the November election.
But we are here today to say that this election will be about three things. It is going to be primarily about soaring inflation, uninhibited illegal immigration, and the general staggering incompetence that we see by the Democrats in charge of Washington.
The three I's. I call it: Inflation. Immigration. Incompetence.
I think that summarizes it very well.
There was a very interesting story on CNN this week that caught my eye. It was entitled, ``Vulnerable Democrats Sound the Alarm Over Inflation Crisis.'' Well, welcome to the party. It is a little late for that.
I would humbly suggest that those vulnerable Democrats should have thought about that before they voted to pass $5.4 trillion--with a
``T''--in new partisan spending last year.
We warned them. This was so completely foreseeable. Government spending is what is causing the current inflation crisis, plain and simple. And now that this bill is coming due, these vulnerable Democrats are hoping the American people would simply forget their vote. We don't intend to let that happen, the stakes are too high, and the issues are too important.
I thank my colleagues for joining us today to discuss the harm that the Democrat agenda has caused our country and our alternative, conservative vision for how to fix all this.
Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser), first among my many colleagues that will be joining me here in the hour, who knows a whole lot about the economy.
Mr. MEUSER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Louisiana, my very good friend, for offering this opportunity to speak on these important issues.
Mr. Speaker, 1 year ago this week, President Biden stood before the American people and said that inflation was temporary. At that point, the Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation, of course, stood at 5.4 percent.
In the 365 days since, the price of nearly everything has increased, and the Consumer Price Index has skyrocketed at 9.1 percent.
Eggs are up 33 percent; milk is up 16 percent; chicken is up 18 percent; and worst of all, Americans are paying over 60 percent more for gasoline than they were a year ago, costing American families, my constituents, and everyone throughout our country, nearly $6,000 extra a year. Now we have our Transportation Secretary telling us the truth, that this pain--and I'm quoting--will lead to more purchases of electric cars.
So that was the plan. Thanks for being honest, Mr. Secretary.
Meanwhile, however, neither the administration nor the Secretary of Transportation has any understanding of where the energy comes from to charge all of these electric cars.
They are not exactly chess players, Mr. Speaker.
As my friend from Louisiana put it, inflation, incompetence--the third ``I''?
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Immigration.
Mr. MEUSER: Immigration. And instead of taking any action to correct this devastating problem, and the effect it is having on American families and small businesses, large businesses, you name it--dogs and cats, probably--the Biden administration has doubled down on the backwards policies and undertaken a massive blame-game campaign.
Not exactly a profile in courage taking place here, Mr. Speaker.
First, they branded the inflation brought on by their reckless spending the ``Putin price hike.'' Then, despite inflation beginning long before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, by the way, then the administration laid the blame for their policies at the feet of greedy corporations--yeah--and then local gas station owners.
Mr. Speaker, 60 percent of the gas stations throughout our country, and certainly in my district, are owned by small independent businesspeople. They are to blame for the gasoline prices that we are paying?
I would like to reiterate, when faced with the highest gas prices in history caused by atrocious energy policies, the President of the United States and many Democrat Members of this House point their fingers and blame small business owners.
The American people are not fooled by the Biden administration's finger-pointing, though they are paying a steep price for it. Despite the administration's best efforts to deceive the American people, we have learned that inflation was not temporary and has continued to skyrocket, largely because of the Biden House Democrats' out-of-control spending.
Instead of addressing America's inflation crisis, House Democrats have continued to push for billions more in government spending, which will increase inflation, it will not decrease it. Continued excessive spending will increase inflation. It is a mathematical and physical certainty.
We must correct course. Stop the reckless spending and unleash domestic American energy production, which will strengthen both our economy and our national security. We must also stop overregulating and overtaxing small businesses, and enough with the blame games and these go woke and broke policies. They have failed the American people.
Mr. Speaker, the free nations of the world need a strong United States, both militarily and economically to lead. We face serious threats. Free nations worldwide know that the world is a far more peaceful and stable place with strong American leadership. The weakness shown both at our southern border and the Ukraine border, initially, have had devastating effects on humanity and on the stability of the United States, Europe, and the free world.
Only with a clear vision, realistic plan, and earnest execution will this be corrected.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. That is so well said, my friend. And it is so true that a strong and vibrant America is good not only for the people in this country but for people all around the world. We maintain peace through strength, and if we don't show that strength, then we are in real jeopardy.
Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Babin), my good friend from right over the border.
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Mr. BABIN. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Louisiana. I appreciate Mr. Johnson for having this Special Order.
Mr. Speaker, according to a recent New York Times poll, more than 77 percent of Americans think that the country is on the absolutely wrong track--and they are right.
Inflation is at a 41-year high. Small businesses cannot afford to stay open. Real wages are down 4 percent. Skyrocketing prices are costing Americans an extra $500 or more per month. Essentially, hardworking Americans are paying more for almost everything while they are taking home less. Why?
Well, the answer is simple. Joe Biden and the Democrat party have put politics over your prosperity. Think about that. Over the last year and a half they have repeatedly shown us that their green fantasy is more important than you being able to feed your family or fill up your car with gasoline.
The administration says that we are in an ``economic transition moment.'' Yes, this inflation was supposed to be temporary and transitory, according to the administration, but prices have risen for 14 straight months since that announcement was made. You don't need to be an economist to agree.
We are undoubtedly in a state of transition. The real question is: What are we transitioning into?
My colleagues across the aisle avoid this question at all costs because the facts just don't back up their fictitious answers. Let me tell you the truth.
You don't need to like Donald Trump to accept the fact that our economy prospered under his leadership. You don't need to be a Republican to accept the fact that our Nation flourished under free-
market, small-government policies--policies that allowed Americans to thrive without Big Brother interference.
You don't need to be in politics to accept the fact that our country has been in a perpetual state of crisis under President Joe Biden. Our economy is plummeting, our southern border is nonexistent, our military is shrinking, and our standing on the world stage is in rapid decline.
So, to answer the question of what we are transitioning into?
Well, under the left's woke agenda, America will transform into a broke, borderless, weak, socialist Nation unable to compete internationally or defeat those who seek our very demise. It is a very frightening future, and one that we as the GOP cannot let come to fruition.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend. It is a very stark reality that we face, but we are optimists. We know we can turn this around, and the American people are going to give us a chance this fall, aren't they? I thank the gentleman for that good word and stark reminder.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Good).
Mr. GOOD of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, the Democrat majority is COVID crazy, it is January 6 forever, January 6 crazy, climate crazy, everything is racist, everything is seen through a transgender lens. Then there are their policies. Their policies that are wreaking harm on the American people, and that the American people don't want.
They have done so much harm to the country in the last year and half as they have had the majority, along with the White House. It is hard to put your finger upon what is the worst thing that has happened to the country. Is it the rapidly rising violent crime?
The undermining of our police?
Putting criminals ahead of victims?
Putting criminals ahead of police?
And just now figuring out that if you cut police, if you defund police, if you don't support police, then, of course, you get more crime.
Is it what they are doing to our military, wokeifying, wussifying our military with these radical policies. These diversity equity inclusion policies that think our military is a social experiment. Kicking out military members because they don't get a vaccine. We got 100,000 troops that are at risk of being dismissed from the military when we are at 40 percent of our recruiting goals.
Is it what we are doing at the border?
Gosh, we could go on and on about the border, once again.
Is that the worst crisis that the Democrats have created with their policies?
What this President had to do to keep a secure border was nothing. Continue the policies of the previous administration and we would have a secure border. Instead, we have allowed some 4 million--now averaging about 10,000 a day--illegal aliens crossing into our country. Over 3 million--acknowledged by border patrol--encountered at the border, most of them released into the interior of the country, and then some 800,000 criminal got-aways, the ones who, you know, don't want to be taken into our custody, don't want to be given free healthcare, don't want to be given free education, free social services, free transportation wherever they want to go, without a quarter to appear.
The ones who are evading capture because they are trafficking drugs, humans, sex trafficking, child trafficking across our border. The ones with terrorist ties and criminal ties who will do irreparable harm in the days, weeks, and months ahead.
Then you look at the energy policy, which is driving--along with the rapid spending--it is driving the inflation in this country. Energy policy. What did we need to do when this President took over a year and a half ago to remain energy independent for the first time in history?
Nothing. Continue the policies. But this President, during the campaign, promised to declare war on fossil fuels to end American energy essentially--oil and gas production in this country. That is a promise that he has kept in the way that he has willfully put regulatory burdens, restrictions on the energy industry.
Now he goes essentially with a big gas can, carrying it over to the Middle East, begging these other world producers--who don't produce energy as cleanly as we do--to produce more energy to try to bail him out of his failed policies.
Meanwhile, what do we have?
His transportation secretary, who has no experience in transportation, by the way, says: Hey, the more pain that we can cause, the more benefit. The more pain we can cause with rising gas prices, the more benefit. Memo: Most Americans can't afford a $70,000 electric vehicle.
Most Americans don't have somebody driving them around in a big SUV so they can get out of the SUV right before the photo op and get on their bicycle and just bike the last block to work. Most Americans don't have that option.
This administration, this Democrat majority is out of touch with the American people. They are hurting the country. These policies are being rejected. You are going to see in 111 days from today the representation of that--the demonstration of that on November 8.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, wow, there are so many important facts there. I will tell you what, it is hard to count all the crises. I thank my friend, that was so well said, as usual.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Rose), faithful to come on this floor week after week and relay the facts to the American people.
Mr. ROSE. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the time on the floor today to speak about these important matters.
Mr. Speaker, when Tennesseans go to the gas pump and grocery store, they are constantly reminded of the fact that everything was much more affordable only 1 year ago.
Since President Biden has taken office and congressional Democrats have recklessly borrowed and spent trillions of dollars, the cost of living has skyrocketed at a rate not seen since 1981--when I was just a junior in high school.
Common sense will tell you, this massive amount of deficit spending overheated the economy and created a labor shortage from folks staying home instead of working. Common sense will also tell you, that the only way to fix this issue is to turn the money spigots off here in Washington and stop this borrow and spend economic death spiral.
Unfortunately, common sense has again failed this Chamber as House Democrats passed earlier today a funding bill filled with partisan initiatives costing hundreds of billions of dollars. The socialist spending bill House Democrats passed today increased some accounts by double and even triple-digit percentages in some cases.
It rewards the Food and Drug Administration, which failed to quickly address the baby formula shortage with a budget increase. It also increases the budget for the Department of Homeland Security, who instead of enforcing our laws and stopping illegal immigration, is encouraging it by attempting to repeal title 42. It even increases the budget to maintain and improve Federal buildings by 12 percent, even though many of these buildings have been mostly empty for the last 2 years.
There are a lot of bad policies in this bill, but one of the worst has to be the exclusion of the Hyde amendment. The Hyde amendment is a bipartisan amendment that has existed for decades to prevent your taxpayer dollars from being used to help fund abortions. This is completely incomprehensible to me. In no way, shape, or form should taxpayers be subsidizing abortions with taxpayer dollars.
Tennesseans are sick and tired of borrowing money from China and forcing their grandchildren to foot the bill. The State of Tennessee should serve as a role model for Members of Congress. We have been committed in Tennessee to enacting fiscally responsible policies up and down each level of government. We don't even have a State income tax, and yet are still able to fund the government without driving our State into a hole of debt from which we will never get out.
I just can't help but think how one-party rule in Washington has completely failed the American people. Democrats have controlled both Chambers of Congress and the executive branch for almost 2 years now and Americans are paying the price.
Tennesseans are rightfully upset with their Federal Government and feel as though their concerns about the future of this country are not being heard. A recent poll shows that in April of 2020, during the height of the COVID lockdowns, Americans actually thought our Nation's future looked brighter than it does right now.
We can't continue down this path. We must do everything we can to rein-in the reckless spending. As interest rates begin to rise, our $30 trillion--and rising--national debt will only continue to get more expensive as the interest on the debt grows right along with it, squeezing out funding for other vital programs. With interest rates now rising at a rapid clip, it is all just a ticking time bomb ready to go off.
Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to listen to the American people and Tennesseans back home and do what is right for the sake of our country and our children. Recognize the policy failures of the last 2 years and commit to joining Republicans in our desire to restore fiscal common sense.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, there are so many great points there. I appreciate the gentleman for coming here and explaining that because we can't say it too much.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Mann).
Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman and my friend from Louisiana for hosting this Special Order hour and for all that he is doing to get the conservative voice out there.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to deliver the 13th installment of my farm bill impact series during a time when the effects of a poor wheat harvest in Kansas are only compounded by crushing inflation.
This is insult added to injury for Kansas wheat farmers. Producers are laboring under the burden of skyrocketing input costs while they work hard to keep our country fed, fueled, and clothed, and they deserve a workable solution to this inflation crisis before the situation gets any worse.
Farming is already a risky, volatile business without the added burden of inflation, and USDA estimates that input costs will continue to rise at astronomical rates throughout 2022.
For an example of the risk of volatility--the wheat harvest just ended in Kansas, and the results were a fraction of the yield that farmers in the Wheat State hope for and bank on for normal seasons. The farm bill, which Congress will reauthorize in 2023, exists, in part, specifically for situations like this past wheat season--to provide emergency assistance to the people who feed, fuel, and clothe the world even when Mother Nature doesn't cooperate.
The weather in Kansas can be extreme and unpredictable, which means that growing wheat in the Wheat State can be a difficult prospect at times.
I had an intern in my office this summer named Parker Vulgamore who is a rising senior at Kansas State University where he serves as the student body president. He is also a member of the sixth generation of his family's farm in Scott City, which lies in my district.
Vulgamore Family Farms is a wheat, corn, and sorghum operation, with wheat being a staple. This year, due to an exceptional drought and extreme conditions throughout the growing season, much of the wheat never grew past 3 inches tall.
You don't have to farm to know that that is not good. What is typically a highly anticipated 3- to 4-week wheat harvest only lasted a day and a half. Many wheat farmers in Kansas barely even ran their combines this year--they harvested what they could, cut their losses, and moved on.
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This is where farm bill emergency assistance programs like crop insurance come in. Crop insurance serves producers and consumers alike because it helps prevent producers from going out of business and grocery store aisles from sitting empty.
Farm bill programs like crop insurance have secured our national food supply and helped generation after generation of producers avoid bankruptcy when times get tough. We are in those times right now.
Inflation is skyrocketing in America. President Biden is trying to impose his farm killer tax, and at the same time, producers are going out of business. The chance to reauthorize the farm bill for 2023 has come at a critical moment in time.
The farm crisis isn't just about money. It is about morale and spirit. It is about joy. Missing wheat harvest time in Kansas doesn't just mean missing out on the yield of a cash crop. It means missing out on the special Kansas tradition of celebrating the culmination of all your family's hard work. It means missing out on grandma's casserole in the harvest field and missing out on seeing your mom in the semi, your dad on the combine, and your little brother getting to drive the grain cart for the first time.
A bad wheat harvest in Kansas doesn't just create financial insecurity. It also leaves a void where a renewal of family camaraderie should be.
American agricultural producers are hurting not only from the skyrocketing input costs that come with inflation but also from the lowered morale that come with drought, thin margins, and a broken supply chain.
In 2023, Congress must reauthorize the farm bill with American farm families at the front of our minds because they are in crisis.
I will be back on the floor soon to deliver another installment of my farm bill impact series and highlight more programs and titles within the bill that I believe Congress must understand and support to ensure that agriculture thrives in America.
The people who feed, fuel, and clothe us all deserve our unwavering support. They also deserve a robust safety net in the farm bill and workable solutions to the inflation crisis before it is too late.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend for standing up for those wheat farmers. I know they appreciate that representation. For all of those in the ag community, this is just a critical issue.
The gentleman is exactly right. The inflation crisis has real-world consequences, and that is just some of them.
Mr. Speaker, I am happy to go across the country to California again to hear, once more, from our dear, faithful friend.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa).
Mr. LaMALFA. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson) for continuing to lead these in order to get this important message out on what is facing Americans not because of a naturally caused crisis but a man-made one, a government-made one. We are doing it to ourselves.
Instead of addressing the economic crisis that is plaguing Americans, the Democrats are prioritizing liberal initiatives and increasing Federal spending, with some accounts receiving double-digit and even triple-digit percentage increases typically through regulatory agencies that are going to make our jobs harder to do.
We have issues. Mr. Speaker, this is just a small example right here of some of the prices of things that are going up. It is not because we have had hurricanes or things like that that have wiped out crops. No. We have had a lot of droughts, but in my home State of California, some of that drought and some of the shortages of water, indeed, are because of government action.
The priorities that we see for spending include giving 20 percent more money to the EPA. I have had the EPA work in conjunction with the Army Corps of Engineers to stop people from farming fields in my district because they think it might have an effect on the Clean War Act or something like that. These are fields that have already been farmed in the past and have been fallow for a period of time, and they want to put them back into production. Oh, no, you need a permit. They didn't think they needed a permit. They didn't know they needed a permit, and so they get fined, big-time.
As Americans face this runaway inflation caused by out-of-control government spending and other regulatory issues that drive up the cost of everything, these are the solutions we get: even more government.
I put some reasonable amendments across recently to try and move things in the right direction and not have these outlandish spending ideas take hold.
For example, in my home State of California, Mr. Speaker, you may have heard of our high-speed rail project that supposedly would link San Francisco to Los Angeles. Well, it sounded like a neat idea on paper when it was proposed and finally voted on by the voters to put $9 billion of bond money toward that back in 2008 for a $33 billion project.
So, they voted for it. Actually, they delayed the election several times because they didn't want to vote in another bond in an atmosphere that might not have been perfect, so they chose 2008, and somehow, it passed 52 to 48 percent. At $9 billion, that was triggered by the voters saying build a high-speed rail; you can't subsidize it; it has to carry its own weight. The price soon, when we figured it out, 3 years later, tripled from $33 billion to $98.5 billion. It is projected now to be about $105 billion.
I had a recent proposal saying: No more spending on this until we actually have a handle on a few important items. They are not even compensating the landowners in the valley so far for the land they are taking by eminent domain that is in the right-of-way. They have all this money, it is such a great idea, and they aren't getting around to even paying the people whose land lies in the way of it. What is that all about?
As well, they are not doing the environmental stuff properly to see that the path is going to be properly handled as far as what might be environmentally sensitive in that area.
Thirdly, they don't even have the whole route laid out. They don't know how they are going to get south of Bakersfield through the Grapevine, over the Grapevine, and around the Grapevine into L.A. Are they going to build a $25 billion tunnel through there that might be subject to seismic? Who knows. But they are still pursuing it anyway.
It has received $3.5 billion of stimulus money from the Obama era of 2009 money--2009, we are talking. Then, they want to get another $2 billion from the so-called infrastructure bill that passed recently. That is $5.5 billion of Federal taxpayer money that all the 49 other States get to pay for, for this boondoggle that, so far, they can maybe lay their hands on $25 billion, the projection, for a project that is going to cost $105 billion. They are going to be searching for $80 billion more. They have already gotten five out of the Federal Government, pretty much. They want $80 billion more.
The whole premise of high-speed rail was that private investors couldn't wait to come in to be part of this project to help build this fast train from L.A. to San Francisco. The investors are staying away until and unless you make guarantees that they will make money, and that is not even allowed in the original proposition that was barely passed by the voters.
There really is no end here on this. They will continue to pursue Federal money because they don't have it at the local level. We have to put a stop to that. That is why I offered an amendment.
This is at a time when people need lower priced fuels for their cars. That is all driven by policies that are happening here in Washington, D.C., pretty much. You can't blame it all on Ukraine and Putin. Yes, we import maybe 7 or 8 percent of our oil. We could have made that up quickly with known reserves of energy we have here, energy we can produce in this country.
We don't need Russian oil. We don't need Putin oil. We don't need foreign oil. We can do it here. We should be doing it. But Biden is making us pay the price with this incredible transition thing he is talking about. It is just hurting the American people. Energy affects the cost of everything, even the final bit where if you got it, then a truck brought it.
In the meantime, California, under a bill called AB5, is putting owner-operator trucks out of business because they are not part of an employment--they don't belong to a union or what have you. In Washington, D.C., they want to emulate that bill called AB5 under what is called the PRO Act and have it cost everybody in the whole country over that.
The ideas coming out of here are not helping the American people. It is very tone-deaf here in Washington, D.C., and in the White House of what the American people are struggling with, with inflation and more profligate spending coming out of this place.
As I mentioned, the Army Corps of Engineers has been busy as a tool of the EPA, working on something called the waters of the United States. They want to be in charge of every drop of water that hits the ground in the country. Even if it hits your roof, Mr. Speaker, and runs down your gutter, there are some jurisdictions that want to control that.
It is pretty ominous, especially when you look at my colleague before me who spoke about the wheat situation in Kansas, as well as they are having difficulty with their wheat crop down in Texas. I have wheat growers up in the northern part of my State in the Klamath Basin that if they could get just enough water, they could get a wheat crop. But they are taking the water away and flushing it down the Klamath River, ostensibly to help the fish population. But that doesn't even work because they are trying to flush some disease or virus out of it, and it doesn't even work. Yet, they keep doing it anyway.
It is kind of like with the delta in California, flushing water out to save the delta smelt. The delta smelt population is basically extinct, and they still flush millions of acre-feet of water out through that.
So, California's agriculture is suffering. California's economy suffers. Those people who are productive are now unemployed, needing assistance instead of being part of the assistance. These are all government regulations coming from D.C. and from California.
It also affects low-cost energy, renewable energy, hydroelectric power. When they take that water away from the Klamath, when they take it away from Shasta Dam and run it out the ocean, that means your electricity prices go up, Mr. Speaker. This all affects the economics of American families because of regulations and profligate spending here in Washington, D.C.
As we look at the world food situation, as my colleague from Kansas has talked about, we are not getting the wheat crop out of the Midwest. There is not enough to run a combine. As he mentioned, we can't even run a combine up in Klamath Basin.
If they don't get the water for the wheat, where are they going to run a combine to help us? Ukraine? They are dodging bombs right now. Russia has 27 million tons of wheat tied up that they are not letting out of the ports in Ukraine.
Where are we supposed to get the food? Hungary is cutting off their exports of wheat. India is cutting off their exports of wheat. We can't grow it in this country. Where in hell are people supposed to get food? No one is going to come to help us.
America is always the one helping everyone else. We need water for ag. We need the money they are wasting on high-speed rail, $105 billion. You could build 21 $5 billion dams for that and grow the food in California that so many people depend on.
I will have an update on that as well as to why California food is important not just in California to growers and workers there but to people in New York, people in Pennsylvania, and people all through the Midwest. What we grow is important not just for our local economy but actually to keep things on the table that people need and demand. Instead, we would be importing them or not having them at all.
It all starts here in Washington, D.C., with misplaced priorities coming out of this administration that are not helping. I have to ask often to the Biden administration and even some of my colleagues in these two Houses here: Whose side are you on?
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend. There are so many important things he highlighted there.
Mr. Speaker, we will go from California over to the great State of Texas next.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).
Mr. ROY. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my friend from Louisiana for yielding to me. I appreciate his time on the floor.
I was in the House Judiciary Committee. I will be spending some time in the 30-minute Special Order here in a second, dealing with a lot of the issues that my friend was just talking about, in particular dealing with energy. What I will be talking about is: They break it; you buy it. That is the reality of what we are dealing with, with our Democratic colleagues here in the majority and in the administration.
Energy is the perfect example of that. We are seeing that obviously in Texas, where we are sitting on a sea of oil and gas that we could be exploring further and producing for the world and driving down CO
I appreciate the gentleman and thank him for holding this Special Order hour time on the floor for our colleagues.
Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for my friend's voice. He was a guest on my podcast last week, and we have gotten a lot of attention on that. People are grateful for his passion on these issues. I hope my friend will keep speaking loudly here on the floor and everywhere. I am grateful he has a national platform to talk, particularly about this immigration crisis, which is a whole different subject, and he has great insight on that.
Mr. Speaker, I will wrap this up. I thank my colleagues for joining me today in this Special Order hour to discuss the harm that the Democrat agenda has caused our country and our alternative visions on all these issues.
By way of recap, just quickly, I was taking notes as my colleague spoke from across the country, from Texas. Dr. Babin reminded us that a staggering 77 percent of Americans believe our country is on the wrong track--obviously, because of all this.
Mr. LaMalfa from California just reminded us of the excesses and abuses of the Federal agencies, which are overregulating our farmers and food producers and wasting our time and precious resources on these superfluous projects.
Mr. Meuser of Pennsylvania reminded us that this inflation is going to cost the average hardworking American family this year an extra
$6,000 in the cost of living.
Mr. Rose from Tennessee reminded us about that skyrocketing inflation rate. It is obviously the result of the Biden policies and the administration's backward approach to all this. But they even now want to remove and eliminate the Hyde amendment so that taxpayers have to fund abortions.
Mr. Good of Virginia reminded us about that border catastrophe and the numbers, which are staggering--Mr. Roy knows, as well--3 million encounters at the border, 800,000 got-aways that we can't even account for, and that is just the numbers the DHS admits to, so we know it is higher. He talked about the energy policy disaster causing pain to every hardworking American family, as well.
Finally, Mr. Mann of Kansas talked about how the inflation crisis has real-world consequences for our farmers in the wheat State and everywhere else.
Mr. Speaker, we could go on and on all night. I will conclude our Special Order hour. This is just a sampling of all the many crises that have been created by the Biden administration and the Washington Democrats in charge of this institution. We cannot wait to begin to turn this around after the November election.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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