semaphore this morning, "one way republicans might stop there spiral into chaos." you are on the byline there. guest: the chair of one of the largest committees or caucuses, the republican study committee has put forth an amendment that would incorporate the border security bill that would have been the original continuing resolution, but bring that spending cap down to that 1.47 one i was talking about. i spoke to two holdouts who said that is probably a measure they could work with, but we will see. we will see if leadership can put forward a new resolution or an amendment on the floor to see if it will pass, but one of the

problems is that the goalposts keep changing. we are not sure it will resolve the issue in the end. host: >> we are going to leave this program here to keep our over 40-year commitment to live coverage of congress. you can continue watching at c-span.org. as we take you now live to the floor of the u.s. house here on c-span. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the prayer will be offered by chaplain kibben. chaplain kibben: will you play with me? lord of all the earth be exhausted in the nations, in the

cacafne we wait for, may we speak to you around the whirlwind that surrounds us on all sides, in the complexity that is the war in ukraine and across the globe let not our opinion or ardor hear your demand for peace and justice. in the impasse of political processes, let not the storms of dispute deafen our ears to your but yield in your guidance the deliberation laid before us in this season. we need only to look to you and see what you, o lord have done in ages past and made wars to cease to the end of the earth and broken the bow and shattered the spear. lord almighty remain with us. may we learn to trust in you, o god, you would be our guide and stay in these days of strife. cause us then this day to be

still and know that you are god. in your sovereign name we pray, amen. the speaker pro tempore: amen. the chair has the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house the approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1w the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance will be led today from the gentleman from tennessee, mr. ogles. mr. ogles: please join me. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker pro tempore: what does the gentleman from -- for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i rise to address the house and ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute.

>> mr. speaker, each year americans attend nearly one billion medical appointments and emergency room visits and quite often are unaware of how much their treatments will cost until after their appointment has ended. mr. joyce: now the house has a chance to pass bipartisan legislation to address this issue and to stand up for our patients. the lower costs more transparency act would immediately benefit patients by providing clear price transparency for medical procedures allowing patients the flexibility to choose where they will receive their care. this bill includes legislation that i authored to provide funding for community health centers which provides care to over 30 million americans nationwide from pediatric checkups to dentistry. rural communities rely on these health centers to meet their

daily medical needs. i urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation. i yield back the balance of my time. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from massachusetts seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. >> a handful of issues has always transcended independence, our troops, the guardians of freedom have always been one of them. ms. clarke: but in the maga republican party, nothing is off the table. nothing takes priority over aire goal of a nationwide abortion ban. ms. clark: military promotions, our troops paychecks and the national defense bill held hostage because extremists want to tear away the reproductive

freedom of the very people fighting for our freedom. i urge my colleagues, put our country first and instruct the conferrees to deliver a defense bill that puts freedom over facism. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. wilson: thank you, mr. speaker. they will address the u.s.a. on ukraine say quote, every dollar spent is authorized by congress and used for a specific purpose. as of september, 2023, the u.s. has provided ukraine $101 billion or about 0.43% of america's g.d.p. the vast majority of this money never leaves the u.s. and instead supports american's jobs. there's never been more

possibility with foreign assistance with the ukraine enter agency working group. several officials monitor u.s. aid to ukraine. according to the kiel institute for the world's economy, ukraine aid tracker, total european commitments are now more than double those of the united states. russia is china's junior partner and a defeated russia means a weaker department. and it has been said the indopacific region cannot be separated from the european security. i support the proven republican policies of barry goldwater and ronald reagan of why not victory over dictators? i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. for what purpose does the gentlelady from nevada seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the lady is recognized for one minute. >> thank you. i rise today to honor the life

and legacy of dr. carol harter, the first president who was a female and the longest serving at the history of the university of las vegas. ms. titus: i was fortunate to teach at unlv during her tenure where i witnessed her dedication to higher education and her student-centered leadership style and her passion for research and learning. she was a recognized scholar and able administrator and one tough lady. carol served as president from 1995 to 2006 during one of the university's most productive stages, creating a hundred new programs and overseeing the construction of 17 new buildings, and co-founding the internationally recognized black mountain institute. it's in large part thanks to her that unlv is a leading institution today. my condolences to carol's family and the entire unlv community. we will remember her through the

unimmitiable footprint through campus and beyond. "let the record prove them wrong" i ask to be entered into the record and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentlelady yields. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to honor a remarkable individual who has dedicated four decades of his life to the field of broadcasting, and in so doing so has become a cherished voice of the people of northern chatocwaw county. i honor him and he has a passion for story telling and a dedication to keeping our community informed. dave has worn many hats from anchoring, producing and hosting his radio show "viewpoint."

through his work he has provided meaningful conversation to the people of the county. we can't but feel loss as journalists see the reliability he has displayed, his dedication to his community and passion for the truth will be his lasting legacy for all that follow in his footsteps. dave's retirement may mark the end of an era but also marks the beginning of a new chapter in his life and we wish him all the happiness and fulfillment in his next chapter and i yield back, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? >> to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in solidarity with nearly 150,000 united autoworkers fighting for fair

pay, better benefits, and safer working conditions. these workers have built $250 billion in profit for the big three automakers over the past decade but they've been left behind. mr. norcross: the big three c.e.o.'s, the big bosses have increased an estimated 40% in their compensation over the last four years, but workers over the last four years, 6%, a measly 6%. to put that in perspective, the big three corporate bosses, $12,000 an hour. those starting wages for the autoworkers, $18 an hour. this says it all. it should be fair. but this is unjust and unacceptable. workers deserve a fair wage and benefits that reflect their hard work. we urge them to be supported and i yield back the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mr. thompson: over the weekend i attended the bean festival in snyder county. this celebration started when captain michael smith and several other surviving civil war veterans wanted to host a reunion with other veterans and that has now grown into a week long affair, supposedly captain smith and his comrades basically had beans and some ham, and therefore decided to provide bean soup for all their comrades attending the reunion. now this fair has vendors today with hides and games but the biggest attraction is the bean

soup. last year they made more than 30 kettles and yes, the recipe has remained the same for more than 130 years. mr. speaker, this week long festival is a staple in the snyder county community and is a unique way to remember the veterans of the silver war while building memories within the community, and i look forward to next year's mcclure bean soup festival as well. thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back and me without lunch. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? >> i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. everyone should have the ability to work in a safe condition, receive competitive pay and benefits and at the end of the day be able to put food on the table. mr. kim: america's hard-working families keep our country running. but right now a lot of families are finding they don't have the support they need.

autoworkers made concessions in 2008 to save the auto industry and new contracts have not been reinstated to help them recover from those cuts and keep up with the economic demands. meanwhile, auto company profits at ford, general motors has skyrocketed 92% over the last 10 years totaling $250 billion. in 2023 alone they are expected to profit more than $32 billion. despite their efforts worker pay has only gone up 6% the last 10 years. companies can and should do better because americans deserve better. workers deserve a fair deal. they aren't asking for the moon but asking for fairness and dignity. thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> elon musk, someone known for

promoting free peach and autonomy stated taiwan is a intrigual part of china. on a practical level think of what it means for our efforts. mr. ogles: we in congress can promote taiwan's participation in international organizations and we can argue taiwan must have a seat at the table, but if we refuse to fail to confront the c.c.p. on their falsification of the historical record, if we as a congress can't confront the c.c.p. with the truth, we're letting ping dictate the terms of the debate and it's irresponsible and wrong. unfortunately, this wasn't the first time mr. musk has spread misinformation about the relationship between the c.c.p., china and taiwan for elon to spread the talking points from the c.c.p. to a position of influence in the united states is unacceptable and why i'm sending a letter to elon musk providing him with an accurate account of taiwan's history in a clear message.

taiwan is not part of the people's republic of china and their free will is not for sale. thank you, mr. speaker and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? >> i ask to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. . >> i rise today to recognize the 95th birthday of my friend, reverend james lawson, who for more than half a century has been a force for justice and workers' rights. ms. chu: as a minister and teacher of nonviolent resistance, he was a leader of the civil rights movement and worked closely with dr. martin n luther king. he led sit-ins, freedom rights and strikes, including the historic memphis san station strike. and he was a mentor to our beloved john lewis.

in 1974, reverend lawson moved to los angeles where he teaches nonviolence at ucla. his work orchestrating nonviolent sit-ins and civil disobedience helped improve working conditions for southern california hotel workers, generating a national movement for immigrant worker justice. reverend lawson has been an inspiration to many as he continues the fight for freedom and justice. happy birthday, reverend lawson. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from nebraska seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to address america's immigration crisis. mr. flood: for 29 months encounters with illegal immigrants have been higher than the highest month in the trump years. while washington democrats continued to ignore the crisis, house republicans continue to do everything we can in our power to force them.

earlier this year, we passed h.r. 2, also known as the secure the border act. this bill helps finish the border wall, stop the biden administration's open border policies, and increases border patrol staffing. this legislation awaits consideration in the democrat-controlled senate. it cannot wait any longer. it's time for the senate to take action. we cannot allow the biden administration to dismantle the border wall. we cannot allow secretary mayorkas to circumvent or dismantle the successful remain in mexico policy. and we cannot continue to allow illegal immigrants to stream across our border illegally without regard for our national security. i urge my colleagues in the senate to come together and support commonsense plans like h.r. 2 to stem the humanitarian crisis at our southern border. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from new mexico seek recognition? >> good afternoon, mr. speaker. i rise and ask unanimous consent to address the house for one

minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. stansbury: mr. speaker, i rise today because labor is in the house. the people's house. as we stand with workers all across america who are on strike, and especially our united auto workers who are on the front lines right now. as a daughter of labor, this is a powerful moment in history. across the nation, across sectors, american workers are tired of giving their lives and their jobs every single day and getting less in return. they are standing up, they are organizing and they are demanding better pay, better conditions, better benefits. this movement is about people, about writers, actors, postal workers, auto workers who are paving the path for future

generations and receiving just compensation. this is the moment. i am proud to stand in solidarity with our united auto workers and every worker across america who's collectively bargaining for the pay, benefits and conditions that they deserve. stay strong, my friends, and keep up the fight. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the lady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, by direction of the democratic caucus, i offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 704. resolved that the following named member be and is hereby elected -- mr. aguilar: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that the resolution be considered as read. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the resolution is agreed to and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

for what purpose does the gentlewoman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i have a motion to instruct at the desk. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: ms. houlahan of pennsylvania moves that the managers on the part of the house at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two houses on the senate amendment to the bill, h.r. 2670, be instructed to disagree to section 716 of the house bill. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 7 of rule 22, the lady from pennsylvania, ms. houlahan, and the gentleman from alabama, mr. rogers, each will control 30 minutes. the chair recognizes the lady from pennsylvania. ms. houlahan: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on this motion to instruct. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

ms. houlahan: thank you. i yield myself such time as i may consume. mr. speaker, i rise today because this house has a choice. we can either stand up for theritises of service member -- for the rights of service members and military families, or we can allow the republican-led house and specifically the extreme faction of the republican conference to continue their assault on reproductive freedoms. for my democratic colleagues and i, this choice is clear. we will fight, we will fight for the freedom of service women and for their families and i urge my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to please do the same. many of our service members joined the armed forces prior to the overturning of roe v. wade last june. and they did so with the understanding that they and their families would be treated with dignity and would receive comprehensive and high-quality health care services, regardless of where they were stationed. and, yes, that also includes access to abortion care. since roe was overturned,

service members and their families have had access to travel and to leave if they need to and if they need to seek reproductive health care. but unfortunately that freedom is now being threatened today. mr. speaker, today for the very first time since 1973, 14 states have passed outright abortion bans and seven more have passed partial bans and six more have tried but have been stopped by the courts. nearly 120,000 service members are currently stationed in texas. 120,000 service members are currently stationed in texas. this is a state that has implemented a draconian anti-choice law and now has among the worst maternal health outcomes for women in the entire nation. and our servicewomen deserve better. this issue has been politicized and it has been distorted, outright lies have been spread by elected officials and by anti-abortion activists alike.

so i would like to set the record straight. here are the facts. women in states with abortion bans are nearly three times more likely to die during pregnancy, during child birth, or soon after giving birth. and let that sink in. we are stationing our women in uniform and their families in states where they are three times more likely to die during pregnancy. no service member should have to accept a reality where they could literally die as a result of the anti-choice state law where they are stationed. so these are the conditions that our servicewomen and their military families have to consider when they decide to serve. nearly half of service members no longer have access to abortion care and that's not counting even the members of their families as well. our service members signed up to serve our country with the understanding that one day, they may have to make the ultimate sacrifice. the sacrifice of their life. and let me remind this chamber

and those who are watching that we have an all-volunteer force. again, i will repeat, we have an all-volunteer force. so as we look to recruit and to retain the best fighters and the greatest minds that this nation has to offer, we really cannot restrict the very freedoms that we ask women and men in uniform to potentially die for. so it's important to also, as we talk, go beyond the facts and beyond the figures and to share the personal and human impact of these anti-abortion laws and the choices that we are facing this week here in this body. in texas, the largest -- i'm sorry, the second largest state for active duty members in our country, amanda was 18 weeks pregnant when her water broke, putting her at a high-risk for developing a life-threatening infection. doctors told amanda that her life was in danger and that the fetus was going to die. but doctors could not provide the medical care that she needed

because their hands were tied by texas law. amanda eventually did develop sepsis and did eventually nearly die and, heartbreakingly, her availability to be and get pregnant in the future might be damaged as well. amanda survived and she survived to share this story about her harrowing experience to hopefully prevent others from having this experience as well. so this story and the data that we have talked about today is why i'm working with my colleagues, led by my dear friend and fellow veteran, congresswoman sherrill, to try to codify this basic travel policy. but this body decided that women cannot be trusted to make their own reproductive health care choices. and instead the majority in this house have decided to make it harder for servicewomen and their families to access care, to make it harder for them to make their own health care choices, to make it harder for servicewomen and military families to decide on their own if, when and how to start their own families.

and now, also, a single united states senator is holding up more than 300 military promotions and counting, hollowing out the military leadership and hurting our military readiness in the process. and he's doing this all because he's that adamant that women in uniform cannot be trusted. as a veteran myself, let me say out loud and clear, that his actions are a disgrace and americans agree, again, more data. 70% of our constituents believe that women should have access to abortion care. and, mr. speaker, the grave concerns i've outlined don't even begin to scratch the surface of all the harmful amendments that are also tacked onto this bill. quite frankly, it's an embarrassment to this institution that our governance is just so fractured, so unable to agree on something so simple as letting a woman in uniform make the best care decisions for her family, her career and for herself.

so, sadly, this is indicative of where we are today. i grew up in a military family and i served myself. my parents didn't always agree on politics, but they shared a common love for the promises that this nation offered. my father, a refugee and holocaust surviver, who then became a career naval aviator. i have colleagues on the other side of this aisle with whom i work with and respect. which is why i'm deeply saddened to see a bipartisan bill that endured for 60 years fall victim to this kind of part s&p politics -- partisan politics. because the bipartisan bill that we passed originally out of committee by 58-1 is literally no longer recognizable. so today, mr. speaker, is about choice. choice in more ways than one. we can either let this far-right minority continue to hold our national security hostage to their radical agenda, or we can refuse to allow then to play politics with our national security and with the health and well-being of our service members. with that, i reserve the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the lady from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from alabama is recognized. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. rogers: i rise in strong opposition to this motion to instruct. this seeks to strip language in the house bill that prohibits the department of defense from spending taxpayer money to facilitate abortion procedures. d.o.d.'s abortion travel policy is a flagrant violation of congress' intent and our nation's moral principles. this is all part of the biden administration's politicalization of the military. for years, biden's political appointees have been pushing questionable policies on our troops just to satisfy their ideological agenda. they understand that using the military is its most efficient way to usher rapid social change that they seek. but the military should not be used as a petri dish for social

experimentation. this is not the right thing to do. our troops should not be used as the van guard for the left's social agenda. the civilian leadership at d.o.d. should be focused on building the world's most lethal fighting force. instead they're doing sommer assaults to try to -- somersaults to try to satisfy the left's agenda. this is just another example. it's a radical overreaction to a problem that doesn't exist. secretary austin said that the policy was necessary to avoid, quote, significant implications for readiness of the force, closed quote. but in six months, since it began, there have been less than a handful of people who have exercised this policy. rather than helping readiness, radical policies like this one are undermining readiness. they're driving away potential recruits. and they're undermining morale and retention and it needs to end. i urge members to oppose this motion and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves the balance thegentleman reserves the balane

of his time. the gentlelady from pennsylvania is recognized. ms. houlahan: before i introduce our next person, i want to emphasize that this is not a new policy. the d.o.d. is not simply creating a new policy out of thin air. the d.o.d. is in fact using precedent from the nonavailability of care and simply allowing women with reproductive health service needs to be able to have effective travel and reimbursement for said travel. again, this is not a new policy and it simply updates a policy that allows for travel reimbursement to ensure that we have equal access to health care. thankfully we have a president in joe biden who is responsive to the needs of our military service members and who supports this effort. with that, mr. speaker, i would like to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from minnesota, representative mccollum. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. mccollum: i thank the gentlelady for time. at some point we'll be able to

debate the defense appropriation bill. we have extreme writers that make cooperation just impossible. the restricting writer we're focusing on today, and is in both bills, stops service members and civilians and independents from accessing productive health care. and as the gentlelady pointed out when certain care is not available where the person is stationed, they have the flexibility to going to seek out the health care. the d.o.d. health care is totally legal. some misnomer is undermining the hyde amendment. it doesn't do that either. the hyde amendment allows for abortion in certain circumstances. this would be a ban if a woman was stationed at a military post where we don't even offer

obstetrics and gynecology and she'd have to seek care in another state. many of these states have limited and put so many restrictions and doctors are fearful of performing even procedures after miscarriage or procedures that was pointed out with the woman from texas. so they have to go some place else to receive the service. even services that are provided under the hyde amendment. and make no mistake, i don't support the hyde amendment but that's the least we should be able to do. as has been pointed out, nearly 20% of the women serve in our military, 80,000 of them are in states that restrict abortions and our troops don't get to choose where they're stationed. so folks, we need to make sure that our service women are not treated as second-class citizens and that they have full access to their reproductive rights. in the past and in the future, women have faced barriers to reach their full potential. let's not put up another barrier. i thank you and yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. gentlelady's time is preserved. mr. rogers: i'd like to yield to mr. jackson of texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, chairman rogers, for your outstanding leadership in crafting the strongest defense bill i've seen in my time in congress. year after year the chairman ensures us we'll have a strong m.b.a. to be proud of back home and this year has been no different. mr. jackson: in july we passed the ndaa to provide our fighters with the resources they need to provide for the defense of our nation. as a former navy rear admiral, i know what we play in our security. not only do we have the weapons our service members need, it makes needed course corrections to restore the military's focus on fighting and winning wars and ensures our military is laser

focused on facing the largest threats our nation faces. now my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have come to the floor and seeking inject politics into our military, overturning the jackson-roy amendment adopted on a bipartisan basis to end the department of defense's illegal and immoral abortion policy. after the supreme court's decision to overturn roe vs. wade, the biden administration made their intention clear they'd work to sidestep the law however possible. the biden administration has pulled every lever within the federal government and encouraged federal agencies to create rules and adopt policies that not only expand abortion access but leave american taxpayers on the hook to subsidize abortion services. not even the department of defense was spared from the biden administration's efforts. so in october of last year, the secretary of defense released a memo entitled ensuring access to reproductive health care. this memo outlined the steps to be taken by the department to use taxpayer dollars to provide service members and their

dependents access to abortions and providers to travel to different states to obtain the licensing required to perform such procedures. then in february this year the d.o.d. enacted the policies outlined in the memo and became a completely unjustified and inappropriate participant on the war on life. according to its illegal policy, d.o.d. can now reimburse travel expenses for service members and dependent who travel to obtain a abortion in another state and can reimburse associated fees for health care officialsing to be licensed in other states for the purpose of performing abortions. all on the taxpayer's dime. last year immediately after the d.o.d. started this unconstitutional process, congressman roy and i got to work to address this issue and ensure we developed a bill to right this wrong. i'm so proud to stand on the house floor today and say our provision mandating the confirm o.d. cease this insanity was successfully included in the house passed version of the bill. at the same time senator tuberville has bravely and steadfastly held the line in the senate by placing a hold on all d.o.d. senior leader nominations

until the d.o.d. complies with federal law and ceases its abortion policies. d.o.d. has complained this will harm national security but d.o.d. has the ability to stop this immediately. all they have to do is rescind this illegal policy. it has become clear to me that the biden administration has purposefully prioritized on the illegal and highlily politicized policy over confirming general officers in the military and the biden policy has nothing to do with strengthening our national security and instead is the latest example of the biden administration pushing its radical and extreme pro abortion agenda ironically in the very department for defending lives. despite your stance on abortion it's in direct violation of federal law specifically section 1093 of title 10 u.s. code that restricts funds made available from d.o.d. for being used to perform abortions or for d.o.d. facilities to be used for abortions. no doubt my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will

insist anyway dollars are not directly funding these abortions thereby rendering their policy legally sound and this is misleading and they're lying to the american people. while the funds may not go to the performance of the procedure, it's been true that the restriction on funding for abortion is a restriction for funding on any cost used to promote or facilitate the abortion. funding travel and/other costs for abortion is in fact funding the abortion. there's no other reason for these travel expenses except to get a abortion. thereby providing support for travel expenses related to the abortion is a clear violation of laws already on the books. the n.d.a. is meant to provide aid, support, and direction to the men and women charged with defending the security of this nation. when necessary, it is also a mechanism through which we can bring the department into compliance as needed. and in conclusion, the house policy on this year's n.d.a. is being it into compliance with our oversight function and refocusing the department on our

core mission of fighting and winning wars. it stops here and it stops now. on this issue i will never relent. the days of the radical left ignoring the law and driving their social agenda in the military are done. i will absolutely not waiver in my defense of the unborn or in my support of the rule of law. i will do everything i can to ensure our military service members can focus on the jobs and their families instead of being used to support political -- or score political points for the biden administration. i appreciate the chairman's strong leadership in crafting this year's bill and look forward to the conference process where we will do everything in our power to maintain this vital provision. with that i yield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from alabama reserves? the gentlelady from pennsylvania is recognized. ms. houlahan: here are the facts, not a single dollar is going for paying for abortion during the d.o.d. travel policy which only provides for leave and travel reimbursements for service women forced to travel for their health care due to restrictive laws of the state they are stationed in.

in long line with a long-standing d.o.d. policy that's always provided for travel and leave where specialized health care is not provided or allowed for. mr. speaker, i'd now like to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from michigan, representative slotkin. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. slotkin: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to call out the amendments that have been forced into the pentagon budget over the past month and a half. when this pentagon budget was voted on in our committee, it passed 58-1. i voted for it, as did many of my peers on this side of the aisle and the other side of the aisle. when it left our committee, it became a wish list of right wing culture war agenda. if you take a 40,000 foot view of what's going on here, it becomes very clear. the other side of the aisle is not going to stop until there is a federal ban on all abortions

in every state in every circumstance. our last speaker made it clear, a bill that is typically bipartisan is now become a prisoner of this debate, so let's review the bidding. we have seen the other side of the aisle put in unnecessary abortion restrictions in minor appropriations, in veterans bills, targeting female veterans. a single senator is holding up 300 critical military nominations because service members want to get leave to get the care they need and the ndaa in its current form is targeting service women specifically. do not make a mistake. the united states should hear in every place in every possible window the people on the other side of the aisle are going to continue their 50-year ledge to get rid of abortions everywhere,

they're open about that, and while those of them in competitive elections may try to miele mouth what they've done the past 24 years we need to hear what they're telling us. the other side of the aisle is taking national security issues now hostage to the unrelenting fight to this issue so no woman has the right to abortion if these been raped or the victim of incest or simple miscarriage which 1-3 women in america have had. i know the other side of the aisle is not listening on this issue. the american people need to hear it loud and clear, they want a federal ban on abortion. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from alabama is recognized? mr. rogers: i'd like to yield one minute to a great armed service member committee and a champion of the unborn, mike thompson of louisiana. mr. thompson: i thank chairman rogers and mr. jackson for their important work on this issue.

historically america has held a positive view among the u.s. military among all our institutions but something changed last year. right now less than half americans have a great deal of confidence and trust in the military and you want to know why, the reason stated is because the military leadership has become overly politicized and addressing issues that don't have anything to do with the national defense. the best example is pro bowl of secretary austin's ability to reimburse travel expenses for an abortion. section 1093 explicitly prohibits funds to d.o.d. for being used to fund abortions and it was drafted and signed into law by people's duly elected representatives and this department of defense has decided to create a work-around. thankfully the house passed ndaa will end the lawlessness and we have to stando for that. the house has spoken and the house's position is clear. i urge my colleagues to defeat this motion to instruct and yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alabama reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is now recognized.

mr. houlahan: mr. speaker, we don't get to choose our facts. the chilling effect happening now on recruiting is caused by a variety of things but the number one reason, the number one contributing factor to a service member's decision to enlist or re-enlist is the support of their spouse. if we're showing the entire country we don't trust women and families to be in control of their own health care decisions, why would they encourage anyone and their family to re-enlist or enlist in the service at all? mr. speaker, i would now like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from colorado, mr. crow. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. crow: mr. speaker, i rise today to urge the conferrees to strike this truly abhorrent provision from the national defense authorization act. as several of my colleagues pointed out when this bill went out of the committee, out of the armed services committee, it passed with a very strong bipartisan, 58-1 vote and then extremists within the republican

party got ahold of it and made floor amendments and put poison pills, including this one, in the bill. so a couple of facts. number one, no taxpayer money is going to provide abortions for service members. the long-standing policy of the department of defense is we allow service members to travel for necessary medical procedures and care when they can't get that care on a base or locally. that is long-standing policy. and that's what we're talking about here today. you've also heard a bunch of my colleagues get up today and say this has nothing to do with national defense and is sue per plus -- super plus -- superfluous. we can buy the best tanks and missiles money can buy but what actually makes us strong? it's our people. our people are lind all of that.

and what undergirds people is the trust within a unit. i served three combat tours in iraq and afghanistan and i tell you if you don't trust the person you're going to war with, it's all meaningless. so are we really going to set up a system where our women service members, our second class citizens within our units and undermine the very trust and integrity of those units? no. we should not and will not. and i will stand against that. number two, we are suffering historic, historic recruiting short ims in our military. and are we really going to send a message to our young women who want to stand up and serve our country and maybe give their lives that they can't access the same care as their male counterparts? ms. houlahan: i yield 30 more seconds. is that the message we want to send? no. you can't say you're for our national security and also support this measure. but more than anything else, this is a moral argument.

i don't want to see yellow ribbons tied around tree, i don't want to see -- trees, i don't want to see people thank people for their service, i don't want to see 10% discounts on coffees and meals. if you're willing to support a policy that undermines the morality of this country and ability of our young men and women to get the care they need and for our young servicewomen in particular to be treated equally. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from alabama is now recognized. mr. rogers: i would like to make one correction. this is a new policy. this was not existing policy. it was anno announce on october- announced on october 20th against the advice of the congressional leadership and finalized on february 16. they just didn't take existing policy and continue it. but with that, i would like to at this time recognize a great new freshman member, representative self of texas for one minute. mr. self: i agree with my colleagues across the aisle.

you cannot choose your own facts. and this is a moral discussion. abortion is not reproductive health. abortion takes a life. there are two people involved in this issue and one of them dies. this is not health care. this is not a political issue, it is a moral issue that our nation needs to grapple with. this motion must not pass. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alabama reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is now recognized. ms. houlahan: mr. speaker, i would now like to yield my two minutes to the gentlelady and former speaker of the house from california, ms. pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. pelosi: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentlewoman for yielding, the gentlewoman for yielding, and for her leadership on this issue. i want to commend the chair and ranking member of the armed services committee for the legislation that came out of their committee, 58-1. the bipartisanship to protect and defend, which is the oath of

office that we take, all of us, to serve in government. and also, though, to acknowledge that on the floor of this house, these poison resolutions came forward, were added to the bill, and i urge -- i rise to move to instruct house conferees to honor our men and women in uniform by protecting their fundamental health freedom. i was listening with interest and prayerfully, frankly, to the previous speaker, who said terminating a pregnancy is not a health issue. well, for some people it might be. do you believe in the hyde amendment? i'm not a fan of the hyde amendment. but that is the law of the land. and under the hyde amendment, if there's rape, incest or the life of the mother is at risk, then that changes the dynamic in terms of public policy. now, suppose a family member has the life of the mother at risk,

or a child of a service member is a victim of violence and rape in the community. would you want that person to have their health needs met? if they're in a state that says, absolutely not, then their health needs -- then they would have to travel elsewhere. in keeping with the hyde amendment. so if you believe in the hyde amendment, which i don't subscribe to, but you do, many of you do, if you believe in that, how can you deprive the life of a mother, whether it's a servicewoman herself or the spouse of a service person or a child of a service member, the ability to seek the health that they need? the ndaa has long been bipartisan. this year house republicans are now engaging in a version that would restrict service members from receiving full reproductive -- this is depends respectful -- disrespectful, shame on those who play political games with

the courageous people who would give their lives to save ours. with that, i thank you for the time and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. and a reminder to all members, please direct your remarks at the chair. the gentleman from alabama is now recognized. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speaker. i share the sentiment of the most recent speaker. i think it is shameful that the d.o.d. has been playing games with the troops in this country. at this time i'd like to yield one minute to the gentlelady from illinois, mrs. miller. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. miller: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank congressman jackson for working tirelessly to stop joe biden from using our military to fund abortions and his woke agenda. throughout this year, we fought to incorporate an amendment into the defense bill to protect the religious liberty of our service members and prevent the biden pentagon from funding abortions. the american people do not want the military paying for abortions. biden's radical left-wing transformation of our military

has created a recruitment and retention crisis which puts our military readiness in crisis. i thank my colleagues in the house who have fought to keep our military from funding abortions. no taxpayer funds should ever be used to fund abortions. and i will continue to advocate for innocent life. as the saying goes, america's great because america is good. abortion is evil and we can never become advocates for killing innocent babies in the womb. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is now recognized. ms. houlahan: just a remind that are our president knows personally what it means to support those in uniform and to keep the administration's promise to make sure that our service men and women are protected as they serve us all. mr. speaker, i would now like to yield two minutes to the gentleman and -- the gentleman from washington state, mr. smith, and ranking member of the armed services committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. smith: thank you very much,

mr. speaker. just a couple quick points. first of all, there's no legality issue here. this policy is clearly an and unequivocally legal as the quotes from the hyde amendment said earlier. basically the hyde amendment says the government can't pay for an abortion or use their services for an abortion. the travel policy does not do either one of those things. so, there's nothing illegal, nothing unconstitutional. this is a policy choice. and we've heard some very passionate arguments on both sides about what that policy choice should be. but, number one, let's put aside this ridiculous notion, this is illegal, unconstitutional. no, this is a perfectly legal policy that on a policy ground you disagree with. in response to chairman rogers' comment about this being a new policy, it's not really a new policy in the following sense. it has always been the policy of the department of defense that if you cannot get the health care that you need where you're at, they will pay to take you to where you can. now, prior to the dobbs decision, that was not an issue when it came to reproductive

services. the dobbs decision changed that. the biden administration didn't support the dobbs decision and didn't make that happen. once that happened, service members in many, many states were no longer able to get the reproductive health care that they needed or wanted where they were. so therefore the travel policy that's been a long-time existing policy then applied. it applied to service members seeking reproductive health care that couldn't get it in the state where they were. this is not a change in policy. and it's not illegal. it is a policy choice. and as a number of speakers have mentioned, it's an important policy choice on the very recruitment issue. it will be harder to recruit women if they are not protected. and i think the former speaker made an outstanding argument for why it is really important. even if you don't believe in abortion, you have a miscarriage, you need these services that you cannot get. this is crucial to recruitment. and the last point on this, we keep hearing about the military

is not popular anymore because of biden's woke policies. which is ridiculous to the extent that the military has gone down in credibility -- ms. houlahan: i yield 30 more seconds. mr. smith: it's because so many people are running around trashing our military. saying they're excessively woke. our military is the best in the world. it's the best in the world today with those policies. and continuously undercutting and trashing our military as being weak and woke is hurting recruitment. i will grant you that. but it is completely wrong, as is senator tubberville's effort to gut the military a ability to do its job because he disagrees with the point. we had a vote on it. president biden got elected. he made his decision. change the policy, don't trash the military. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. smith: thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from alabama is now recognized. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield 2 1/2 minutes to a long-time

champion of the unborn in america, mr. smith of new england. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. smith: i thank my good friend for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in opposition to the motion to instruct. let's be absolutely clear. current federal d.o.d. law already permits taxpayer funding of abortion in cases of rape, incest and to save the life of the mother. but the biden d.o.d. abortion travel policy forces taxpayers to pay the transportation costs for military members and dependents to travel to procure an abortion for any reason whatsoever, right up until the moment of birth. some states like my state of new jersey and there are many others like it like new york and california have enacted extremist laws that legally sanction the killing of a baby for any reason whatsoever right up until the moment of birth. the biden policy has no limits on gestational age. so it facilitates aborting babies through all nine months. there's nothing humane, mr.

speaker, or benign about abortion. abortion is not health care unless one construes the precious life of an unborn child analogous to a tumor to be excised or a disease to be vanquished. the house-passed amendment to the ndaa overturns the d.o.d. abortion travel policy. regrettably, the pro-abortion culture is truly a culture of denial, continues to deny, devalue and disrespect unborn children, both boys and girls. we must recognize the breathtaking miracle of the newly created life of an unborn child and that women deserve better than abortion. we need to care for both. we need to love them both. i do believe, mr. speaker, that future generations will someday look back on us and wonder how and why a society that brags about its commitment to human rights could have legally sanctioned and aggressively

promoted child beheadings, because they do behead the child during the process of a dismemberment abortion. other dismemberment, abortion pills, how do they work? they literally starve the child to death. that's how they work. i work on global hunger and food insecurity issues in my district and throughout the country and world all the time. how does the abortion pill work? it starves the baby to death. please, mr. speaker, i call on my colleagues, don't force taxpayers to facilitate abortion on-demand. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is now recognized. ms. houlahan: mr. speaker, i would now like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, representative tbar mendy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman -- garamendi. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. garamendi: thank you. i'm honored to stand here beside my women colleagues in support of this very important motion. as they have shared, we have an essential duty to protect the rights of our service members, their reproductive rights, we protect the decisions that they

must be able to make about their own body. when service members volunteer, they know that they will be making sacrifices, they know that they will have to follow orders. they know that they'll have to take on hard missions and do whatever is necessary to defend our country. one thing they did not sign up for is to sacrifice their fundamental medical care and the fundamental rights to their own body. access to medical care has a direct impact on military readiness. i'm very surprised to find that the very people that are claiming to care about our military's capability and readiness are pushing policies which will actively degrade our fighting forces. denying access to medical care sends a loud and clear message to every woman in the military now and to every other woman that may want to join the military, that is, your reproductive rights will not be honored or will not even exist

should you join the military. that's a message that will be sent to 18% of the women who make up our military today. and it will send the same message to every other woman that might want to join the military in the future. these policies that are in this bill will chase women away from what they want. that is, to patriotically serve our country in the military. it's the wrong message. this particular instruction should pass this house if we care about the readiness of our military. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from alabama is recognized. mr. rogers: mr. speaker, may i inquire as to how much time i have remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alabama has 18 minutes left remaining. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield 2 1/2 of those 18 minutes to an outstanding member of the armed services committee, mr. fallon, from texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. fallon: thank you, mr. speaker. we've heard a lot of claims,

some of them very hiesh bollic, -- hyper bollic, and some i would classify as dribble. it's one thing to disagree, but we should at least be truthful, ok? so let's look at the amendment itself. section 716, lines 9 through 14. and i quote, the department of defense may not use any funds for abortions except where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term or in the case where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest. so let's be truthful, mr. speaker. at least we're making some progress. some of the members, friends across the aisle, have used the term woman instead of birthing person. so there's something that has been, i think, at least for me, given me some hope. the question before us is a simple one. are we a rule of law nation or not? of nation or not? secretary austin in his decision

to pay service members to pursur violation of current law. the hyde amendment. we are hearing that necessary health care, is it necessary health care or elective abortion? necessary health care in the case of rape is already covered under the hyde amendment. and don't paint us with some wide brush to say we want to take that right away. i would submit that many republicans want to protect women that have been impregnated because of rape. that's absurd. it really is very unfair. is the d.o.d. complying with federal law right now or not? this policy does t by prohibiting funding for this policy the ndaa is ensuring we maintain protections already enshrined in current law. again, it's one thing to disagree, but to make these hyperbolic, untrue claims

doesn't serve the purposes of a spirited exchange of ideas or honest debate. secretary austin f. you want to be honest, is playing politics. if he would simply follow the law, 300 general and flag officers would get the promotions that they are due. the only person and people that are jeopardizing readiness are right now secretary austin and president biden and his administration. our bill puts an end to this nonsense once and for all. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alabama reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. ms. houlahan: how much time do we have? the speaker pro tempore: eight minutes. ms. houlahan: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. moulton: i thank my colleague from pennsylvania. my republican colleagues often blame the military's current recruitment crisis on d.e.i. initiatives. they say the military is becoming too woke and that it's driving away the troops.

the only problem with that is the survey data we have actually says the opposite. it says what recruits are concerned about is being welcomed into an organization that will accept who they are. with this anti-abortion policy, republicans are effectively telling 50% of america and 20% of our current fighting force, you are not welcomed here because of who you are. if you are a white guy, you are fine. if you are a woman, sorry, you are a second class citizen. you don't have the health care options that the rest of us have. it's no wonder that every branch except the marine corps is struggling to meet recruitment goals. instead of seriously focusing on how we deter a war in china or having politically motivated debates in this chamber over a woman's private health care decision.

what my republican colleagues won't say is that the d.o.d.'s apportion travel policy does not even pay for this medical care. doesn't pay for it. it simply allows a woman who put her life on the line for our country the necessary leave as she's stationed in a state where abortions are not available. i voted against the ndaa because it doesn't support our service members. it makes them political pawns. it's a slap in the face to every woman who serves or might consider it in the future. we need to treat women with the respect they deserve for serving our country. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from alabama is recognized. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speaker. i would like to yield one minute to the gentlelady from indiana, mrs. houchin. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. houchin: thank you, chairman rogers. thank you for yielding. let me just start by saying

killing a baby is not health care if it's done in an elective abortion. clearly the hyde amendment gives exceptions for life of the mother, rape, and incest. so, mr. speaker, we shouldn't really have to be here talking about this issue today, but we are. the amendment we are speaking in support of today would repeal the department of defense's policy that facilitates elective abortion at taxpayer expense. whether they are for travel or any other purpose related to abortion, they are illegal. mr. speaker, it seems pretty cut-and-dried to me and many of my colleagues what the department of defense is doing now is not in line with long-standing and current law according to the hyde amendment. while the administration might disagree with the supreme court's decision with respect to dobbs, it does not give them the right to circumvent the law. taxpayer funds should not be spent on elective abortion, period. republicans are not the ones polarizing this country,

injecting wokeness and politics into institutions entrusted with our defense, it's -- quite the contrary. mr. rogers: i yield 30 seconds. mrs. houchin: republicans are not polarizing the country or injecting wokeness and politics in institutions entrusted with our defense. what we are trying to do is trip those -- strip those things out of the department of defense and return them to their sacred duty of defending the country. i voted in support of this amendment because it was the right thing to. as the house just agreed to proceed in conference, i strongly encourage house conferees to advocate for its inclusion in the final product. this is an issue about the rule of law pushing back on the administration that's demonstrated its appetite to ignore it. i thank the chairman of the armed services committee for his leadership as we head into conference. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alabama reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. ms. houlahan: i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. mr. rogers: at this time i'd like to yield 1 1/2 minutes to

the gentleman from missouri, a great member of the armed services committee, mr. mark alford. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. alford: thank you, mr. chairman. today i stand with my colleagues to oppose the motion to obstruct and repeal the facilitating abortions funded by the department of defense and in effect taxpayers. following the supreme court's landmark dobbs decision, biden administration sought ways to bypass the ruling. they have encouraged federal agencies to not only expand abortion access but burden american taxpayers with the cost. last october the secretary of defense release add memo entitled, ensuring access to reproductive health care. let's get something straight, mr. speaker. there is nothing reproductive about abortion. abortion ends a life. it does not reproduce. this homeo passes the -- paves the way for taxpayer money to service.

taxpayers funds for the d.o.d. are meant for national defense not to further a pro-abortion agenda. let me be clear, mr. speaker. we believe in the life affirming care for the mother and the baby that god is growing inside of her, but we also believe that the government in no way, no shape, no form should be paying to facilitate ending that life. i urge my colleagues to back this amendment, defeat the motion to obstruct, and let's save some lives. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. ms. houlahan: reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from alabama is recognized. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield one minute to the gentlelady from texas, ms. van duyne. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. van duyne: i rise in opposition to this motion. i will admit it's very nice to hear my democrat colleagues are finally concerned with military recruitment. i wish they were worried about military recruitment when they were voting to kick out of the

military members who didn't want to get the jab when they were voting to support the botched afghanistan withdrawal that led to so many unnecessary deaths. they seem to have already changed the recruitment videos from come, be all you can be, to come, and get an abortion. how proud they must be. this is no more than a federal power grab. usurping state laws that were really -- legally and actually created by state legislators elected by a majority of voters from each state. this is a federal power grab by a party intent on forcing its radical political agenda down the throats of americans who overwhelmingly don't want it. as president biden and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle know, the hyde amendment, which president biden supported for decades, expl explicitly prohibits federal dollars from being used for taxpayer funded abortions. nearly 60% of americans agree taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund abortions. i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. mr. rogers: mr. speaker, i understand -- you reserving? at this time, mr. speaker, i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from colorado, mrs. boebert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from colorado is recognized for two minutes. mrs. boebert: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you to the chairman for yielding me this time. i rise to oppose the motion to instruct conferees to not include my colleague, representative ronny jackson's amendment, in the fiscal year 24 ndaa. it's a gross misuse of taxpayer dollars to circumvent state laws and violate the decades old partisan -- bipartisan hyde amendment. it is clear that joe biden and lloyd austin's department of defense is more focused on appeasing the woke mob of pink hat wearing feminist that focusing on keeping our nation safe. this is the same d.o.d. that surrendered to the taliban,

costing the lives of 13 brave service members. this is the same d.o.d. treating our military like a woke social experiment. and this is the same d.o.d. the house will vote to fund later this week. the department of defense should be focused on readiness and lethality. not spending taxpayer dollars to kill the lives of innocent unborn babies. we are not going to give up on this cause that is righteous. and we are not going to stop fighting to give voice to the voiceless. since roe v. wade in 1973, over 63 million lives have been lost to abortion. i personally have held a newborn baby born at 23 weeks old. one pound, eight ounces. and i know that her life has just the same worth and value as

any one of us standing here today. i want to thank my friend and colleague, congressman ronny jackson, for his leadership in restoring our military focus and protecting these precious unborn lives. i'm proud 20 stand with my -- to stand with my colleagues in defense of these children, as well as with millions of americans across our nation. i urge my colleagues to oppose this motion to instruct. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields. mr. rogers: i understand my colleague is ready to close. i have no further speakers. i can close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady is recognized. ms. houlahan: i would like to reserve 30 seconds for myself. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for 30 seconds. ms. houlahan: i would like, very much, mr. speaker, if i could ask you to ask my colleagues to not presume to judge who i am. i stand here as a woman who has

worn the uniform. who has given birth while wearing the uniform. to have assumptions about who i am or what i am. and to judge me or any of my other colleagues who have worn the uniform to me is an offense. i would ask that you advise them not to presume anything about me. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from alabama is recognized. mr. rogers: at this time i'm prepared to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. rogers: this provision protects life and restores sanity to the department of defense. i urge members to oppose the motion and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. houlahan: mr. speaker, a far right minority in congress has spent the last nine months holding this process, this ndaa hostage. again a reminder this passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. they are struggling currently to even pass a rule for defense appropriations, let alone to pass the budget itself. they have gone through attacks

on servicewomen, lgbtq service members, on immigrant service members, and so much more. and their allies in the senate are risking our military readiness with as nine confirmation holds and ignoring the repeated requests of our most senior military members to stop. time and time again they have used must-pass historically bipartisan legislation such as the ndaa to force an extreme agenda on our service members and many others in our country. as an air force veteran and as a proud military child who lived and served across this great country and in many other places outside of this country, i did so with the full protections of roe v. wade, and it not only saddens me but also pains me to think that we would give service women on orders not the full reproductive freedom and protection that is i had when i was able to serve. today, mr. speaker, i please urge my colleagues to choose to be on the side of our service members.

military families, and all americans who love and support them by supporting this motion to instruct. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: all time for debate has expired. without objection, the previous question is ordered. the question is on the motion to instruct. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the nays have it. ms. houlahan: i ask for the yeas and nays, please. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in

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