Positive Political Progress # 3
Debunking/Explaining “Where does my taxes go and congresspeople do nothing.” Focusing on some state reps today.
One of the main issues facing us as Democrats is how to explain/show what our Congresspeople do. Most voters think “Both sides suck, all politicians are corrupt and they don’t do a damn thing for us anyway.” Which dovetails right into the “Well, I don’t get anything for my taxes so why should I pay them/small government is better/we need to gut the IRS” vibes we see in the electorate.
Congress people work tirelessly to secure federal tax money to help their constituents through grants, it’s one of the main ways they can directly affect the lives of people. Most states can’t cover their own bills all the way without federal help, but of course when you have almost 500 Congress people trying to get money it takes time and a lot of paperwork/research to get funds for your state over someone else’s.
Here’s a few Congress people you probably never really hear of and some of the programs that they have secured funds for.
Programs like what Rep. Sewell (D AL) got to help mental health/substance abuse facilities in her state.
At a press conference Friday morning, Rep. Sewell was joined by Alabama Regional Medical Services (ARMS) CEO Dr. Ted Greer Jr. to deliver a check for $600,000 that she helped secure from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The funding will be used to expand the program’s mental health and substance use services and combat the mental health and opioid crisis. It is part of a $240 million investment by the Biden-Harris Administration to expand behavioral health services at community health centers across America.
And she also secured this:
Later Friday morning, Rep. Sewell visited the Loveman Village Daycare Facility and was joined by Birmingham Housing Authority President and CEO Dontrelle Young Foster, Superintendent of Birmingham City Schools Dr. Mark Sullivan, and local elected officials to present a check for $1 million to the Housing Authority of the Birmingham District (HABD). The funding will be used to renovate and expand the daycare facility at the former Loveman Village to accommodate more children. It is part of the $13.1 million that Rep. Sewell secured in the Fiscal Year 2024 federal government funding package for local projects in Alabama’s 7th Congressional District.
One of the biggest issues facing this country is child care, and here we have an example of how Dems are using our tax dollars to help child care facilities expand and provide more services.
Moving from Alabama to Alaska (both Red States, may I remind you) we have Rep. Peltola working to boost an excellent source of renewable energy, geothermal. And this is a bipartisan bill. Now…as much as we all hate the idea of working with GOP, in order to get things passed, especially for Red State Dems, you have to. Which is what she did.
The HEATS Act would expedite geothermal energy production by clarifying that geothermal operators do not need a federal drilling permit for wells that are on state and private lands where the subsurface geothermal estate is less than 50% federal. While operators would be exempt from federal permitting requirements, they would still be subject to state permitting regulations.
Another example of bipartisan success can be seen here
Where once again the massive Infrastructure Act comes into play.
“Today, Representative Mary Sattler Peltola (D-Alaska) and U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan (both R-Alaska), announced that six coastal communities in Alaska will receive more than $104 million in investments this year for critical port and maritime infrastructure. These grants, funded by both annual appropriations and the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), will benefit port, harbor, and dock improvement and development in communities across Alaska. The IIJA provided $2.25 billion in funds available over five years to the Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP), which is a key funding avenue for Alaska coastal communities. Funding for these grants was made up of $450 million from the IIJA with an additional $50 million provided in the FY24 Appropriations Act, for a total of $500 million in available funding.”
Repairing and improving ports not only benefits everyone in Alaska but also provides 1000s of jobs. Once again showing how Democrat initiatives like the Infrastructure Act benefits middle class America.
Unfortunately Rep Petola lost out to a GOP candidate in this last election. I remember how surprising it was that a Dem won in a very Red State, and the GOP went into full on attack mode to get rid of her. Ironically, the person that beat her comes from a family full of Dems, yet he flipped to GOP as apparently a “lifelong Republican.” She lost by 7000 votes after winning the seat in a special election by 10 pts 2 years ago beating out Sarah Palin.
And from the snow to the sun we head to California and Rep Lieu.
This isn’t a funding bill but it addresses a growing threat of using AI in scams/to commit fraud.
“In the right hands, AI can improve lives, and in the wrong hands, AI can be dangerous,” Rep. Lieu said. “Criminals have access to more information and technology than ever before and that puts everyday Americans at greater risk of becoming victims of fraud or scams. We should have in place harsh punishments for using this technology to clone voices, create fake videos, doctor documents and cull information rapidly in the commission of a crime. Increasing the penalties for committing fraud using AI is one way to deter bad actors from abusing this technology. I’m pleased to join Congressman Kiley in introducing this important piece of legislation to help keep people safe.”
Being a creative I would love them to do more against Gen AI but that is mentioned here but it is a start nevertheless.
Rep Lieu also secured funding to help kids…
Yesterday, Congressman Ted Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) presented a $1 million check to the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Los Angeles Harbor (BGCLAH) to expand youth services in Los Angeles County. The funding will help build upon the success of the Harbor City Boys and Girls Clubs’ Pathways to Success project, which provides college and career support to young individuals in Congressman Lieu’s district. Congressman Lieu requested and secured $1 million for the organization in the Fiscal Year 2023 government spending package.
The Boys and Girls clubs provide outlets for kids to not only stay active but to explore arts and music as well. All of which are more and more lacking in our school system due to budget cuts.
Day in and day out Congress people are doing their jobs, we rarely hear about what they do, rarely even ask how they affect our lives. But the results, good or bad, can be seen everywhere you look.
Take the time to educate yourself so you can help educate a voting public who is notoriously apathetic/uninterested/misinformed. The only way we get better election results is creating better voters.
