Providing for Consideration of H. Res. Condemning Unwanted, Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals Without Their Full, Informed Consent, and Providing for Consideration of H. Res. Condemning Qanon and Rejecting the Conspiracy Theories It Promotes

Floor Speech

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I thank Representative Scanlon for yielding me the customary 30 minutes.

Madam Speaker, this rule consists of two nonbinding resolutions, H. Res. 1153, regarding allegations made against the Irwin County Detention Center, and H. Res. 1154, condemning QAnon and rejecting the conspiracy theories it promotes.

First, H. Res. 1153 is a complete disregard to our Nation's due process system. If the accusations from the women at Irwin County Detention Center are true, they are obviously horrific, and this resolution would be, obviously, an appropriate response.

However, we don't know anything for certain yet. In fact, the Office of the Inspector General and the Department of Homeland Security are currently conducting investigations.

We could open up a committee investigation, too. We could go through a normal committee oversight process where we have a hearing and bring in witnesses to get to the truth. That would be appropriate, not this.

Guess what. ICE agrees with us. Acting ICE Director Tony Pham issued a statement on September 18, 2020, saying: ``The recent allegations by the independent contracted employee raise some very serious concerns that deserve to be investigated quickly and thoroughly. ICE welcomes the efforts of both the Office of the Inspector General as well as the Department of Homeland Security's parallel review.

``As a former prosecutor, individuals found to have violated our policies and procedures should be held accountable. If there is any truth to these allegations, it is my commitment to make the corrections necessary to ensure we continue to prioritize the health, welfare, and safety of ICE detainees.''

In fact, I, along with my colleague from New Jersey, Representative Chris Smith, sent a letter to DHS last week to state that the allegations are alarming and must be investigated thoroughly.

It also said in our letter that these accounts don't comport with the statement of Dr. Ada Rivera, the medical director of the ICE Health Services Corps, who stated that, since 2018, only two individuals at Irwin County Detention Center were referred to certified, credentialed medical professionals at gynecological healthcare facilities for hysterectomies. Dr. Rivera also said that detainees are afforded informed consent, and a medical procedure like a hysterectomy would never be performed against a detainee's will.

On September 18, the Associated Press published an article citing the results of its own internal investigation. It stated that the AP's review did not find evidence of mass hysterectomies as alleged in a widely shared complaint filed by a nurse at the detention center.

The AP also noted that one attorney investigating the case had found that Dr. Amin has performed surgery or other gynecological treatment on at least eight women detained at Irwin County Detention Center since 2017, including one hysterectomy.

As a member of the Homeland Security Committee and the co-chair of the Bipartisan Women's Caucus, I am very concerned about these accusations in this situation. However, what happened in this body to due process?

The way the House is moving forward today on this resolution sets a very dangerous precedent. For instance, in the resolution itself, it states: ``Whereas these allegations indicate a failure by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to conduct rigorous oversight to protect the health and safety of people in its custody.''

However, we do not even know if the allegations are true. It should, instead, read: ``If true, these actions indicate a failure.''

We can't just base it on allegations. This is an example of my Democratic colleagues' acting first and learning later.

Right now, we need to investigate, not bring a resolution condemning ICE to the floor. This is backwards, and it is just wrong. America needs to see us together on this issue. Unfortunately, my Democratic colleagues clearly do not want to work with Republicans to make that a reality.

Madam Speaker, this rule also contains H. Res. 1154.

At the outset, let me be clear, Republicans are concerned with and do not embrace QAnon.

I have to admit, although I must confess I know little to nothing about this idea, organization, whatever it is, if what they say on Wikipedia is true, then, of course, we oppose it. In fact, on August 20, the House Republican leader, Mr. McCarthy, stated very clearly that there is no place for QAnon in the Republican Party.

It is a serious issue, and Republicans don't discriminate on which dangerous organizations or groups we take seriously. We don't just condemn groups because it is politically convenient. Because, unlike many of our colleagues across the aisle, we also take the threat of antifa seriously.

It is clear, unfortunately, that many of my Democratic colleagues refuse to condemn antifa. Chairman Nadler said here right on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives something to the effect that antifa was a myth, a fantasy. Just the other night, Vice President Biden refused to condemn antifa at the debate.

That is why, last night, I offered an amendment to this resolution in the Rules Committee to include condemning antifa, so we, as a governing body, could unite against at least two threatening groups and ideologies, not just one.

Unfortunately, all of my Rules Committee Democratic colleagues voted against my commonsense amendment, even though FBI Director Wray, himself, testified recently in Judiciary Committee: ``Antifa is a real thing. It is not fiction.'' In other words, antifa is not a myth as some on the other side believe. According to the FBI and the Department of Justice, antifa is involved in the rioting and looting across our Nation.

So while I do wish that the majority would have included a resolution condemning antifa in this rule for floor consideration today, I am glad Republicans can put country first and agree when a group poses a threat.

Madam Speaker, I urge opposition to the rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, let's be clear: I already said it, but we agree. We condemn QAnon, but we also ask the majority to condemn antifa.

Why is the majority condemning one group and not the other group? That is the point.

But let me go on to what my colleague, Representative Scanlon, said on H. Res. 1153. This was said in the Rules Committee last night, too, that all this resolution does is call for an investigation.

That is inaccurate. This resolution goes beyond that. In fact, it says it right here, and I said it last night. It says: ``Whereas these allegations indicate a failure by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.''

So, if all it did was call for an investigation, fine, but that is not what it all does. It says: Whereas these allegations indicate a failure by ICE.

Madam Speaker, you saw in the comments that Representative Scanlon gave that she was going after ICE. That is what this is about.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Austin Scott).

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for yielding, and I thank all of my colleagues for their comments.

Madam Speaker, I would like to focus my comments on the attacks on the Irwin County Hospital and the staff at the Irwin County Hospital. And one of the things that I would like to make very clear is: While I was not invited to the event at the Irwin County Detention Center that my colleagues had--even though it is in my district--I was on the telephone with people who were there at the time, including our local hospital administrator. I have been to that facility, and one of the things I want everybody in this Congress to understand is, surgical procedures are not done at the Irwin County Detention facility. They are not. They are done at the Irwin County Hospital.

So when you talk about procedures being done at the Irwin County Detention facility, it is just false. They are done at the Irwin County Hospital. The detention facility is not set up to do surgical procedures.

So the question is: How do we get here?

Well, there was a whistleblower complaint filed by a group named Project South on September 14, 2020. I have a copy of the complaint. The complaint focuses on COVID and the challenges that the facility may or may not have had with COVID. And every facility in the United States, including this Congress, had challenges with personal protective equipment and COVID, and how we were handling those issues.

Now, in this complaint, which focuses predominantly on COVID, they make an allegation of hysterectomies. And I read to you from one of the AP articles: ``But a lawyer who helped filed the complaint said she never spoke to any women who had hysterectomies. Priyanka Bhatt, staff attorney at the advocacy group Project South, told The Washington Post that she included the hysterectomy allegations because she wanted to trigger an investigation to determine if they were true.''

And the investigation has been triggered. And we all want the investigation to go forward, and we want the facts to come out. And nobody wants the facts to come out more than those of us who live in that area. Nobody wants the facts to come out more than the doctor and the hospital and the staff at that hospital and the people who work at the detention facility.

Madam Speaker, I share with you a couple of quotes from some other AP articles. This is from The Washington Post: ``The advocacy group that filed the complaint, Project South, did not make the hysterectomy allegations the focus of its September 14 complaint to DHS, a complaint that alleged there is poor medical care and novel coronavirus risks at the ICE facility.''

The attorney at Project South who was the lead investigator for the complaint said in an interview with The Washington Post that she did not speak to or identify any women who had undergone a hysterectomy.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record the Washington Post article. [From the Washington Post, Sept. 22, 2020] Hospital Where Activists Say ICE Detainees Were Subjected to Hysterectomies Says Just Two Were Performed There (By Nick Miroff)

A hospital in rural Georgia where a physician has been accused of performing a large number of hysterectomies on immigrant detainees said its records show that just two women in immigration custody have been referred to the hospital for the procedure since 2017.

Heath Clark, an attorney for ERH Healthcare, which operates the Irwin County Hospital, said both of the procedures were performed by Mahendra Amin, the physician whom activists have accused of carrying out forced sterilizations on immigrant women in U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement custody.

According to a complaint filed last week by immigrant advocates and attorneys, a former nurse who worked at the Irwin County Detention Center, Dawn Wooten, claimed that a doctor known as ``the uterus collector'' was subjecting female ICE detainees to unwanted hysterectomies. The doctor was later identified in news reports as Amin. Through attorneys, he has denied the accusations, and calls to his office were not answered Tuesday.

Clark said hospital records show that Wooten's claims are ``demonstrably false.''

``These allegations are disturbing and sensational, but they are not supported by reality,'' said Clark, speaking by phone from Nashville. ``Dr. Amin is a longtime member of the Irwin County Hospital medical staff and has been in good standing for the entirety of his service to the Irwin County community.''

The allegations of forced sterilizations received significant attention from lawmakers, news organizations and human rights groups last week. Attorneys who represent several women have come forward to say that their clients received gynecological treatments from Amin that they did not agree to or fully understand, including one former Irwin detainee, Pauline Binam. Binam said that one of her fallopian tubes was removed without consent.

Binam's deportation to Cameroon was halted last week at the behest of Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.).

Amin has a private clinic near the detention facility, but the hospital is the only place where such a procedure would be performed in small Irwin County, Clark said. Amin does not have an ownership stake in the hospital, contrary to some news reports, Clark said.

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), one of the lawmakers who participated in a virtual hearing Monday to discuss the ICE report, called Wooten's allegations of sterilization procedures on ICE detainees ``one of the most inhumane things I have ever heard.''

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) wrote a letter signed by 173 lawmakers demanding a DHS inspector general investigation.

``There may be at minimum 17 to 18 women who were subjected to unnecessary medical gynecological procedures from just this one doctor, often without appropriate consent or knowledge, and with the clear intention of sterilization,'' Jayapal said.

In a subsequent interview, Jayapal acknowledged that she did not know the details of each of those cases, but the number she cited referred to the clients of attorneys with whom she had spoken.

The advocacy group that filed the complaint, Project South, did not make the hysterectomy allegations the focus of its Sept. 14 complaint to DHS, a complaint that alleged there is poor medical care and novel coronavirus risks at the ICE facility. But it was the allegations of forced sterilizations that triggered a firestorm.

``The rate at which the hysterectomies have occurred have been a red flag for Ms. Wooten and other nurses at ICDC,'' the Project South complaint said, without identifying other nurses.

According to Project South, ``Ms. Wooten explained: `We've questioned among ourselves like goodness he's taking everybody's stuff out . . . . That's his specialty, he's the uterus collector. I know that's ugly . . . is he collecting these things or something . . . . Everybody he sees, he's taking all their uteruses out or he's taken their tubes out.' ''

Priyanka Bhatt, the attorney at Project South who was the lead investigator for the complaint, said in an interview with The Washington Post that she did not speak to or identify any women who had undergone a hysterectomy. Bhatt said she included the allegations to spark an investigation into their validity.

The legal director at Project South, Azadeh Shahshahani, said by email Tuesday: ``We have already heard from multiple attorneys representing numerous women who have suffered abuses reflected by Ms. Wooten's whistleblowing disclosures. Some of these women are considering speaking up because Ms. Wooten courageously stepped forward. There has been a troubling pattern of misreporting on the health and welfare of detained immigrants held inside ICE facilities, and we look forward to Congress, the Inspector General, and all other relevant offices conducting a full investigation and applying immediate, necessary, corrective actions.''

ICE said its own records show that two female detainees at Irwin have been referred for hysterectomies since 2018. Officials at ICE said the agency would have records of such procedures, which would require the approval of a supervising medical officer at the agency. ICE officials say they are cooperating with investigators.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, here is another article from Reuters: ``Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Thursday that the government has not yet found any proof of forced sterilization of Mexican women being held at migrant detention facilities in the United States.''

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record this article. [From Reuters, Sept. 24, 2020]

No Evidence of Sterilization of Migrant Mexican Women, Says Foreign Minister (By Reuters Staff)

Mexico City (Reuters).--Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Thursday that the government has not yet found any proof of forced sterilization of Mexican women being held in migrant detention facilities in the United States.

The comments came after U.S. immigration officials earlier this month said a federal watchdog would investigate complaints made by a whistleblower nurse in a Georgia immigration detention facility who alleged detainees had improperly received hysterectomies and other gynecological procedures.

Ebrard told reporters that 20 of 24 female Mexican nationals being held at detention centers in the U.S. states of Georgia and Texas had been interviewed and none of them had been subjected to such procedures.

He added, however, that an investigation was ongoing as more women still needed to be interviewed.

Ebrard at the time described such potential abuse as ``unacceptable'' and said that if the procedures were confirmed, measures would have to be taken, without giving details.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, now somewhere between September 14 and September 25, H. Res. 1153 was drafted. And I think that that date is extremely important because the resolution was drafted before you even went to the ICE detention facility in Irwin County. It was drafted before you even got on the site to see what was actually happening. The hospital administrator was there at the facility on the 26th. And there are a couple of things I want to point out:

One, the hospital administrator is a lady. She is a good lady and she is a good hospital administrator. And the doctor is an immigrant.

Now, everyone who came to that facility had the opportunity to meet with the hospital administrator, and every single one of you refused the opportunity to get the facts from the hospital administrator.

Never mind the facts. And you wonder why people hate us up here.

Madam Speaker, I have a statement I would read from the Irwin County Hospital, who wants a complete and thorough investigation: ``Irwin County Hospital is aware of various allegations of misconduct against individuals being detained at the Irwin County Detention Center.

``Irwin County Hospital is committed to the safety and welfare of everyone in our care, including patients referred for care from the Irwin County Detention Center. From 2017 to the present, two individuals in detention at the Irwin County Detention Center were referred to Irwin County Hospital for hysterectomies.''

You have made accusations of mass sterilization. You should be embarrassed by your conduct.

You don't want an investigation because you don't want the facts.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Georgia.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, ``From 2017 to the present, two individuals in detention at the Irwin County Detention Center were referred to Irwin County Hospital for hysterectomies. Mahendra Amin, MD, performed these two procedures. Dr. Amin is a long- time member of the Irwin County Hospital medical staff and has been in good standing for the entirety of his service to the Irwin County community.

``Irwin County Hospital is and will continue to cooperate with any and all regulatory investigations related to healthcare services provided at Irwin County Hospital.''

Dr. Amin has only performed two hysterectomies in 3.5 years on detainees at Irwin County Hospital. This has been acknowledged by independent reviews by ICH, ICDC, ICE, and even the Associated Press.

Independent peer review has confirmed those cases were medically necessary.

Irwin County Hospital is the closest hospital facility to the Irwin County Detention Center.

The CEO of Irwin County Hospital was available to the Hispanic Caucus during their visit to the detention center. The warden made the Caucus aware of her presence at the facility and availability and no questions nor interaction was made by the Caucus. You absolutely refused to even speak to the lady that runs the local hospital because you don't want the facts.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record this statement released by the hospital.

Irwin County Hospital is aware of various allegations of misconduct against individuals being detained at the Irwin County Detention Center.

Irwin County Hospital is committed to the safety and welfare of everyone in our care, including patients referred for care from the Irwin County Detention Center. From 2017 to the present, two individuals in detention at the Irwin County Detention Center were referred to Irwin County Hospital for hysterectomies. Mahendra Amin, MD performed these two procedures. Dr. Amin is a long-time member of the Irwin County Hospital medical staff and has been in good standing for the entirety of his service to the Irwin County community.

Irwin County Hospital is and will continue to cooperate with any and all regulatory investigations related to healthcare care services provided at Irwin County Hospital.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, yield myself such time as I may consume. Again, we are all for investigations. Two investigations are already going on; one by the office of Inspector General; one by DHS. I wrote a letter, along with Representative Chris Smith, to the DHS Secretary Chad Wolf last week, saying: Please investigate this, get back to us.

The problem that I have with this resolution is that it also condemns ICE, just based on allegations that haven't even been investigated. The findings haven't been done yet. So how can you condemn an agency based on allegations that haven't even been proven yet? That is the point.

That is what Mr. Scott was trying to say. There are opposing viewpoints. One side said this happened, another said it didn't.

So last night, in addition, in Rules Committee, I said: Why don't we postpone this resolution until October 9? Give it a week. Let's go through committee and find out what is exactly going on. Let's have DHS come in. But, no, they opposed that, too.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Collins), my good friend.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 3 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

If we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule to immediately consider Small Business Committee Ranking Member Steve Chabot's H.R. 8265, to reopen the Paycheck Protection Program to America's 30 million small businesses.

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Mrs. LESKO. This amendment would ensure our Nation's smallest and most vulnerable firms get the support they need by allowing an opportunity for a second PPP loan with specific funds set aside for small businesses with 10 or fewer employees, expand the list of eligible covered expenses, simplify the loan forgiveness process, and extend PPP through the end of 2020.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cloud) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Stauber) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Indiana (Mrs. Walorski) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Smucker) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Austin Scott) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. 8265 to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to keep millions of employees on the payrolls of America's small businesses.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Newhouse) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Kevin Hern) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

Mr. KEVIN HERN of Oklahoma. 8265 to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to keep millions of employees on the payroll of America's small businesses.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Norman) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Johnson) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Carter) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Babin) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Walker) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Baird) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Watkins) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Crawford) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Keller) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Garcia) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Calvert) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Kelly) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. King) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.
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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Chabot) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Balderson) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Tipton) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Bishop) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

Mr. BISHOP of North Carolina. 8265 to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to keep millions of employees on the payroll of America's small businesses.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Meuser) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Palmer) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Marshall) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Olson) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. 8265 to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to keep millions of employees on the payroll of America's small businesses.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Budd) for the purpose of a unanimous consent request.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, in closing, we need to help the American people. The House should be considering a bipartisan COVID-19 relief package right now, not binding resolutions that simply have the purpose of making political points.

Our constituents need us, so let's get to work on a bipartisan package that could actually be signed into law because, let's face it, anything else is worthless to the American people.

Madam Speaker, I urge ``no'' on the previous question, ``no'' on the underlying measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mrs. LESKO. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

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