Political Quotes

“I thank and appreciate the gentleman from South Dakota (Mr. Johnson). I thank him for his leadership in making sure that people understand the gravity of the situation that we face, so I thank him very much. Mr. Speaker, we have talked a lot about both these bills, probably more, though, about Savanna's Act. Let me talk a little bit about the BADGES for Native Communities Act. It is a bill that strengthens Tribal communities' ability to investigate crimes related to missing and murdered indigenous women and better enforce pubic safety. BADGES stands for Bridging Agency Gaps and Ensuring Safety for Native communities. It gives Tribes and Tribal law enforcement agencies access to Federal resources and databases so that they can more effectively investigate open cases. It will always provide resources for Tribes to recruit and retain qualified law enforcement personnel, which addresses an issue facing Native communities across the country. Representative Deb Haaland of New Mexico and Representative Tom Cole, the two lead sponsors of the BADGES for Native Communities Act and co- chairs of the House Native American Caucus, could not be here with us this evening, but I know their advocacy has inspired many Members of Congress, myself included, to work to bridge those gaps on behalf of Native communities across the country.…”