Constitutional Rights on Campus

Floor Speech

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Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, freedom of speech and thought on college campuses is essential to one of the most important missions of the university: the search for truth.

While censorship can come from the right or left, many colleges and universities are now zealously devoted to advancing leftwing ideas and are willing to disregard evidence and logic to do it.

Universities should be a marketplace of ideas, not temples to a single political dogma. When students or faculty speak out against established norms, they are canceled, fired, or otherwise stigmatized by peers and university administrators.

This is not what our Founding Fathers intended for our country or for our universities. Thomas Jefferson, who founded the University of Virginia, once wrote: ``I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.''

Universities used to promote this sentiment, but things have changed--and not for the better. Universities should be centers of education, not indoctrination. Yet university leaders either brazenly push their own agenda or walk on eggshells in fear of their own student body.

Research and development suffer when debate and discussion are openly rejected on college campuses. Quashing intellectual curiosity hinders every field of study.

The freedom to speak and think freely comes from God. Students should not have to sign away their First Amendment rights after enrolling in college, especially if those institutions accept taxpayer funds. It is time for colleges and universities to be held accountable when they refuse to protect the free speech of students and faculty.

Members of the Education and Workforce Committee have submitted multiple bills to promote and protect the freedom of speech on college campuses.

In the next Congress, we look forward to examining closely these bills and other ways to preserve the First Amendment on campuses. Independent Contractors

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Ms. FOXX. This administration won't be happy until it controls how, when, and where you work. It is hard to know if it is sheer arrogance that drives this administration to think it knows better than you or if Biden is so beholden to Big Labor that he refuses to see what is best for the rest of America.

Regardless, this administration's attack on independent contractors is wrong, and Republicans aren't standing for it.

Many workers, especially women, have come to rely on the flexibility the independent contracting model provides. A regular 9-to-5 schedule does not work for every American.

Forcing all workers into a one-size-fits-all model, while a dream for union bosses, is a mistake. This debate is about freedom. Workers deserve the freedom to choose how they work.

I am pushing back against Democrats' assault on entrepreneurial opportunity and their attempts to control the lives of Americans from birth until death.

Because I have seen firsthand that when the Federal Government steps aside and allows job creators and industry leaders to innovate, the workforce and U.S. economy will thrive.

We have had enough of this Washington-knows-best mentality.

Remember when President Obama told Americans, ``You didn't build that.'' He ridiculously claimed that businesses need the government's help to be successful.

As if this wasn't bad enough, now the Biden administration is telling America's entrepreneurs, ``You can't build that.'' This is unacceptable. We must do everything we can to stop this proposed rule, and I encourage everyone to get involved.

Get on the phone, call your Representative and Senator, and submit a comment. We must put pressure on the Biden administration to withdraw this proposed rule.

Enough is enough. The livelihoods of real people are at risk. Americans should be able to build a future they want for themselves. It is time for Washington to get out of the way.

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