Floor SpeechNeutral2026-06-29

VOTING WITH OUR FEET

EconomyTradeSocial SecurityLabor

Context

On 2026-06-29, Representative Mike Haridopolos (R-FL-8) delivered a floor speech titled "VOTING WITH OUR FEET" in the House.

Full Text

VOTING WITH OUR FEET

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 108 (Monday, June 29, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 108 (Monday, June 29, 2026)] [House] [Pages H4267-H4268] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] VOTING WITH OUR FEET (Mr. Haridopolos of Florida was recognized to address the House for 5 minutes.) Mr. HARIDOPOLOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about something that maybe isn't the most exciting subject, but it is something I used to teach in the classroom. It is called federalism. The map to my left here shows exactly what is happening in America today, and it is a great thing. People have the power to vote with their feet and leave failed States. There is a reason States like Texas and Florida are attracting more and more people. It is because the system works. People are recognizing that when we have high taxes and high crime, it is time to leave that State. That is what is happening today: the idea where people are voting with their feet. Federalism is that opportunity, and it is the reason why I want to talk about what has happened in the last few years. One of the issues I want to talk about is what I would call amnesia or maybe memory loss. During the Biden years, food prices went up dramatically. You will see that what you used to spend $200 for at the grocery store, you now spend $250. If you spend $1,000 a month at the grocery store, you are now spending over $1,200, almost $1,300. That is a significant amount of money. It is fundamental. Especially as we move toward the MAHA movement, people are making better choices but with great challenges. With the idea of amnesia, what is the Democratic plan? Their plan has been: Let's go back to those failed policies. It wasn't just on groceries. In early 2021, the monthly rent was between $1,550 and $1,600. When we took over in early 2025, it had gotten as high as over $2,000. Again, that is a radical increase. Their plan is to go back to this plan. This is why I want to make sure people recognize where we are. The affordability issue is a challenge, no doubt, but to return to failure is not an option. That is why I am pleased to see that we are moving in a direction that should matter because not only are we reducing some of these costs, but, more importantly, we are putting more money back in people's pockets. The Democrats had the opportunity in 2021 and 2022 to pass all types of things to actually reduce taxes for the working class. They could have cut taxes on Social Security, overtime, and tips, yet they failed to do so. They could have reduced taxes on the middle class, who are so hard hit by the inflationary numbers I just talked about. They did nothing. We gave them a second chance. We said: We are actually going to reduce taxes on overtime, tips, and Social Security. Join us in that effort to help people hard hit by higher food costs and higher rent costs. To a Member, they said no. They wanted to actually let the tax rate regress back to the old Obama rates, which would have been, on average, a 23 percent increase. Is that giving relief to people? Absolutely not. That is why I think, as I have mentioned before in this map, that people have the power to vote with their feet. They know when they go to my home State of Florida that taxes are lower. I will give you one simple example. I am a former New Yorker. Do you know that Florida actually has more people than New York, and yet their State budget is twice as high? That means people are paying twice as much in taxes than you are in Florida. I will ask the other logical question: Would you feel safer today in New York City or in Florida? These are the choices that people get to make in America. It is a great thing. It is the reason why we don't think one [[Page H4268]] size fits all and the reason why we want to allow people to vote with their feet, whether it be on education issues, tax issues, or even public safety. The choices are clear. Stay on the positive path of putting more money in your pocket, giving you the flexibility to lives in States that actually believe in freedom or regress to 4 years of failure. It is not just, again, on money issues, but that issue of crime is so important today in understanding where we want to go. They even want to change the number of people on the Supreme Court, pack the Court in order to get their way in the end. That is not the way to solutions. That is why I think people need to make sure they do not have amnesia moving forward or memory loss. The best way to solve problems is to empower the individual, send less power to Washington and more power back home. ____________________

View original source →

VOTING WITH OUR FEET Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 108 (Monday, June 29, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 108 (Monday, June 29, 2026)] [House] [Pages H4267-H4268] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] VOTING WITH OUR FEET (Mr. Haridopolos of Florida was recognized to address the House for 5 minutes.) Mr. HARIDOPOLOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about something that maybe isn't the most exciting subject, but it is something I used to teach in the classroom. It is called federalism. The map to my left here shows exactly what is happening in America today, and it is a great thing. People have the power to vote with their feet and leave failed States. There is a reason States like Texas and Florida are attracting more and more people. It is because the system works. People are recognizing that when we have high taxes and high crime, it is time to leave that State. That is what is happening today: the idea where people are voting with their feet. Federalism is that opportunity, and it is the reason why I want to talk about what has happened in the last few years. One of the issues I want to talk about is what I would call amnesia or maybe memory loss. During the Biden years, food prices went up dramatically. You will see that what you used to spend $200 for at the grocery store, you now spend $250. If you spend $1,000 a month at the grocery store, you are now spending over $1,200, almost $1,300. That is a significant amount of money. It is fundamental. Especially as we move toward the MAHA movement, people are making better choices but with great challenges. With the idea of amnesia, what is the Democratic plan? Their plan has been: Let's go back to those failed policies. It wasn't just on groceries. In early 2021, the monthly rent was between $1,550 and $1,600. When we took over in early 2025, it had gotten as high as over $2,000. Again, that is a radical increase. Their plan is to go back to this plan. This is why I want to make sure people recognize where we are. The affordability issue is a challenge, no doubt, but to return to failure is not an option. That is why I am pleased to see that we are moving in a direction that should matter because not only are we reducing some of these costs, but, more importantly, we are putting more money back in people's pockets. The Democrats had the opportunity in 2021 and 2022 to pass all types of things to actually reduce taxes for the working class. They could have cut taxes on Social Security, overtime, and tips, yet they failed to do so. They could have reduced taxes on the middle class, who are so hard hit by the inflationary numbers I just talked about. They did nothing. We gave them a second chance. We said: We are actually going to reduce taxes on overtime, tips, and Social Security. Join us in that effort to help people hard hit by higher food costs and higher rent costs. To a Member, they said no. They wanted to actually let the tax rate regress back to the old Obama rates, which would have been, on average, a 23 percent increase. Is that giving relief to people? Absolutely not. That is why I think, as I have mentioned before in this map, that people have the power to vote with their feet. They know when they go to my home State of Florida that taxes are lower. I will give you one simple example. I am a former New Yorker. Do you know that Florida actually has more people than New York, and yet their State budget is twice as high? That means people are paying twice as much in taxes than you are in Florida. I will ask the other logical question: Would you feel safer today in New York City or in Florida? These are the choices that people get to make in America. It is a great thing. It is the reason why we don't think one [[Page H4268]] size fits all and the reason why we want to allow people to vote with their feet, whether it be on education issues, tax issues, or even public safety. The choices are clear. Stay on the positive path of putting more money in your pocket, giving you the flexibility to lives in States that actually believe in freedom or regress to 4 years of failure. It is not just, again, on money issues, but that issue of crime is so important today in understanding where we want to go. They even want to change the number of people on the Supreme Court, pack the Court in order to get their way in the end. That is not the way to solutions. That is why I think people need to make sure they do not have amnesia moving forward or memory loss. The best way to solve problems is to empower the individual, send less power to Washington and more power back home. ____________________