Serving in Congress is a privilege — and it’s a job that comes with many challenges and various battles to fight. After 11 years in office, it can be easy to allow the latest bad news story, divisive issue, or cultural fight to swallow up your sense of optimism. Far too many people in politics fail to fight that tendency and worse, they spread the darkness that’s overtaken them to others and to their constituents. It’s a downward spiral, and one that needs to stop.
In this business, and in so many others, we must remember how great this nation…
Until Vladimir Putin is held accountable for his crimes, the vicious attacks on those who oppose him will not stop. Last month’s poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny proves this point, and it is well past time for the world to take action.
The attack on Navalny is an affront to our values, and his situation was serious. While his recovery continues, he is still yet another victim of Putin’s desire for total control of Russia. The former-KGB agent has operated Russia as an authoritarian state for the last 20 years, sowing chaos and discord in order to get…
This should go without saying, but I want to make it crystal clear: those who support QAnon have no place in Congress. Period.
As a Member of Congress, I have great respect for the institution in which I serve and take my responsibility as a representative seriously. It’s a great honor to serve in Congress, and when it’s threatened by hate and bigotry, I will defend it by calling out those who do not uphold the values and integrity of this governing body.
I wouldn’t normally want to give any attention to such a baseless movement as QAnon, but right…
The United States can no longer view China simply as an economic competitor. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has evolved into a clear and present national security threat that must be addressed now. This reality took some time to sink in, but the coronavirus pandemic, which has left over 100,000 Americans dead and tens of millions suffering financial hardship, has removed all doubt.
Since discovering the virus in Wuhan, the CCP silenced doctors and scientists trying to sound the alarms, shut down social media across the country, and threatened to withhold lifesaving drugs from the world. …
I do not need to restate it… the American people are all too aware of the problem. In a nation with over 300 million people, there are sick individuals that inflict terrible damage on innocent people. Whether it’s a high profile shooting like the tragedy in El Paso and Dayton this weekend or the daily gun violence in Chicago just north of my hometown, we have become numb to this senselessness. After every shooting, the conversation runs like a broken record with some who believe banning all guns is the answer, while others advocate for arming more and more people…
As a military pilot who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, I firmly believe that supporting our troops is vital to our national security today and in the future. Our men and women who sacrifice to serve and protect this great nation need our support while they serve and when they come home. But we must also support those who have risked their lives to serve alongside our American armed forces and personnel overseas in order to advance the cause of freedom and protect the United States. …
Last Christmas, as I spent time with my family, I reflected on what the negative rhetoric in politics has done to our younger generations and the effect it would have if it continues. In the world of Twitter, Facebook, and round-the-clock media coverage, it can be overwhelming for young people who are still developing their own views and learning about the world they live in.
And sadly, it seems the negative rhetoric is only getting worse. The anger, violence, and across the board intolerance is setting a dangerous precedent for our democracy and our country — and our children are…
National security is paramount, and the first job of the federal government is to protect the American people. The President’s recent executive order has caused confusion among those asked to enforce it, and recent media reports have muddled facts and fiction. I urge the Administration to clarify the specifics on what should and should not be done to best protect our homeland, our people, and our communities.
I support a comprehensive look at our vetting process, and I believe it’s something every new administration would be expected to do. However, reports of green card holders and those who assisted us…
Something amazing and critically important happened in Tuesday’s vice presidential debate. While there were plenty of disagreements and jabs over policy differences, there was an important area of bipartisan agreement: the complacency of U.S. and global inaction in Syria must stop.
In August, we saw the heartbreaking image of a young Syrian boy named Omran sitting alone in an ambulance, dazed and bloodied from the shock of a Syrian/Russian air strike on his home in Aleppo. It was even more tragic when we learned that Omran’s ten-year-old brother, Ali, was killed in that same strike. While Omran became a symbol…
Fifteen years. It’s hard to believe it has been fifteen years since the world witnessed the worst terrorist attack in history, and the United States suffered its worst attack on American soil since the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
Fifteen years ago today, on September 11, 2001, America was attacked by radical Islamic jihadists and suffered the loss of more than 3,000 innocent lives with more than 6,000 people injured. We lost fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, sons, and daughters. We lost our sense of security as we witnessed true evil that fateful Tuesday morning.
Fifteen years later, each of…
