On the recordSeptember 21, 2021
We already have laws that prohibit the United States military from carrying out domestic policy on United States soil. This amendment would prohibit evidence obtained by the military in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act from being used in a court or other legal proceedings. While I am actually sympathetic and believe this issue is one that is worthy of our consideration in its current form, I urge opposition. The issue is simply too complex to rush through here without careful consideration and deliberation in regular order. The implications of this amendment are also unclear. We have a crisis on our southern border, a crisis that continues to be ignored by Democrats and is continually getting worse. What happens, for example, if the continued failures of the Biden policies cause the situation at our southern border to become so dire that our military is called to secure our border and the military obtains evidence of trafficking or smuggling or some other crime? We simply do not know enough about changing this longstanding legal document here today to jam it into a National Defense Authorization Act. This is an issue that needs to go through a more robust process where the committees of jurisdiction can hold hearings and fully explore all possible consequences. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose the motion, and I reserve the balance of my time.
