WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) delivered her final speech on the floor of the House of Representatives today, highlighting her four years of service in Congress of delivering for Coastal Virginia and urging her colleagues to counter the growing threat that China poses to the United States by maintaining and growing the Navy.
Click here for the video of Rep. Luria’s remarks on the House floor.
Rep. Luria’s remarks as prepared are below:
“I rise today as we approach the conclusion of the 117th Congress and as I near the end of my service in this esteemed body.
As I reflect on the multitude of challenges this nation and the world have faced in these four short years and those that lie ahead, I thank my colleagues and our leadership for the seriousness and dedication with which they have tackled these challenging issues.
I want to thank my staff in Washington and our three district offices for your tireless dedication to the people of Virginia’s second district. You have assisted so many who needed a helping hand— everyone from farmers to shipbuilders in Coastal Virginia.
And I want to thank my family. My husband Robert and daughter Violet. I could not have been here and served the district and the people of Virginia without you.
I also want to acknowledge the strength and the bond of the Class of 2018. You have been amazing colleagues and true friends. I know that you will continue to be leaders focused on improving our country for our next generation.
We entered Congress under a partial government shutdown, a legacy of the protracted battle of how to fund security at our southern border— a 35-day lapse in government funding— the longest in our history. On my first weekend in office, I visited a pop-up food bank where the local community rallied behind our Coast Guard families who were starting the new year without a paycheck. This was a story of our community stepping in to care for one another that are so common and that I heard repeatedly in every corner of our district over these four years. But they are also stories of how the distractions caused by political theater and political divisions lead to unnecessary hardship. As we approach a looming deadline to fund our government, we should not let divisions or rhetoric stand in the way of performing our fundamental role as Congress of funding the government.
On May 31, 2019– a day that remains etched in the memory of Virginia Beach — I saw the devastation caused by the first of what would be two mass shootings that roiled our community. That day, twelve innocent victims left home for work before the approaching Memorial Day weekend, a time where they would have enjoyed celebrating the beginning of summer with backyard BBQs and trips to the beach, yet instead their lives were senselessly stolen by a shooter who entered the municipal center and indiscriminately opened fire. And again, just weeks ago, on the eve of Thanksgiving a shooter opened fire in a local Chesapeake Wal-Mart as shoppers were grabbing their last-minute needs for a holiday meal. This time our community lost 6 more precious lives who would not join their families at the holiday table. Among these losses was a 16-year-old boy. This Congress has taken small measures to prevent these types of tragic events in our community— and yours— but as I depart, I implore my colleagues to continue to do more
The first time I stood in this very place to speak on the floor of this house as a new member, I rose as Jewish woman to speak out against antisemitism which has seen a rapid and alarming rise and had even reared its head among our colleagues in this body in the form of claims of dual loyalty towards those who show support for Israel. I look back on that first speech I made as a member of Congress even more concerned today about the rising frequency and pervasiveness of antisemitism. I implore my colleagues to continue their quest to root out this scourge of vile and pernicious antisemitism.
In that first speech I mentioned my oath to “support and defend the Constitution,” but little did I know that two short years later I would witness an attempt by our own President and his allies to subvert the Constitution and summon a mob to disrupt the counting of electoral votes of a free and fair election. On that day— Jan 6, 2021– Lives were lost, these hallowed halls were desecrated, and the strength of our democracy was tested. I have been humbled to participate in uncovering the facts about that dark day in our nation’s history. I thank Chairman Thompson, Vice Chair Cheney, and my colleagues and the staff of the Jan 6committee for standing on the side of democracy.
I am proud of the work we have done over the last two congresses to support our veterans and their families. My “Gold Star Families Tax Relief” legislation eased the tax burden on children of those killed in combat or deceased from service-connected disabilities. And I thank President Biden for making veterans’ toxic exposure a priority. We passed the largest increase in access to veterans benefits in our lifetime through the PACT Act, which included my legislation, the COVENANT Act to provide healthcare to burn pit veterans.
The threats we face as a nation continue to grow as we witness Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, Iran’s persistent pursuit of a nuclear weapon, and the rise of China, threatening our maritime and national security. We have heard testimony that China is likely to attempt to take Taiwan by force in the next five years, and this is our most pressing national security concern. The action or inaction we take in standing up to China in this moment will determine whose values will rule the remainder of the 21st century and beyond— The United States and our allies— or the Chinese Communist Party. That is why, as I depart, I urge my colleagues to take this threat seriously. To fulfill the constitutional task of Article 1, Section 8, to “provide and maintain a Navy.” If we fail to remain the predominant maritime power in the Pacific. Frankly, nothing else that we do here in this Congress will matter if we don’t get this right.”