James C. Moylan

“I want the House to pass this defense bill. It spends nearly $1.9 billion on Guam's defense and helps our local economy. It extends a guest worker program, helps local farmers sell food to the military, trains students, and stops the military from taking over 100 acres of local land.”

“Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act. Guam is on the front line of America’s national security in the Pacific. This bill delivers nearly $1.9 billion in vital defense investments on the island while ensuring the people of Guam remain a priority. This legislation secures an extension to the H-2B workforce provision through 2035 to guarantee long-term stability for our local economy. It sets a target for military commissaries to source at least 15 percent of produce from local farmers, expanded workforce credentialing for our students, and protected local land by removing a proposed military acquisition of over 100 acres. Guam has carried a tremendous share of our Nation’s defense responsibilities for generations. As the people of Guam continue to serve this country, the passage of this NDAA will, in turn, serve our island. Mr. Chairman, I urge our colleagues to support the passage of this bipartisan bill.”

“I support this bill. It cuts regulations for small, rural, and new banks so they can better help local businesses in places like Guam.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6955, the Main Street Capital Access Act. When the people of Guam set out to enterprise new business ventures, we turn to our community banks to raise capital. However, much of America’s financial system is not designed with small businesses in mind. While big banks have the resources to cut through red tape, small community ventures often struggle to comply with a regulatory regime that never had them in mind. The Main Street Capital Access Act makes commonsense reform, tailoring regulations so small lenders can comply, while opening more resources to the new banks, small banks, and rural banks which serve communities like Guam. This bill will give the Guam business community a fair chance, and I thank the Financial Services Committee for their work on this legislation.”

“I oppose the bill to end birthright citizenship in U.S. territories. Congress is trying to take away rights in Guam that the Supreme Court says it cannot take away in the 50 states. People from Guam fought for this country and serve in our military at high rates. Our land and our citizenship should be treated with the same respect as any state. I want Congress to reject this bill.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to strongly denounce the End Birthright Citizenship for the Territories Act. The author of this bill is quick to offer assurances that the bill explicitly carves out protection for the children born to U.S. citizens and permanent residents on Guam who will fully retain their American citizenship. They present this as a reasonable compromise, a harmless safeguard for our local families. Madam Speaker, do not mistake a patronizing concession for respect. The clause does not ease the fundamental insult of this legislation. It merely exposes its hypocrisy. By including the very language, this body openly acknowledges that it is attempting to do in the territories what the Supreme Court just ruled it cannot constitutionally do in the 50 States. It exploits the fact that citizenship in Guam is governed by statute, rather than the full embrace of the 14th Amendment. It creates a dangerous and deeply insulting double standard. It signals to our community that the ground under our feet is a lesser class of American soil. It says that while the States’ borders are structurally protected from Washington legislative whims, the legal fabric of our island cannot be experimented on by Federal mandates. Our citizenship was not handed to us by casual gift or a line item to be tinkered with. It was forged in the fires of World War II, through the brutality of an enemy occupation where our people suffered, yet never once wavered in their alliance to the United States. We have repaid that honor by serving the United States Armed Forces where our sons and daughters serve at a rate higher than nearly any jurisdiction in the Nation. To tell a population that bears a great weight of defending this Republic that Congress can selectively alter birthright citizenship on their soil is a profound sign of disrespect. It treats the sacred bond of our citizenship as a secondary status subject to the political whims of Washington. We do not ask for constitutional handouts or patronizing exemptions. We ask for equality. We demand that the soil our veterans defended be treated with the exact same constitutional reverence as the 50 States. Madam Speaker, this bill fails the test of basic respect, and I urge my colleagues reject this double standard and join me in denouncing this bill.”