Dear John,

Hello! I'm sorry we didn't get this to you on Sunday, but we are in the process of updating some of our services so we can better connect with our constituents. Watch for some changes in the coming weeks.

This week, I joined Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA), Chair of the Subcommittee on Military Personnel, to introduce bipartisan legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives to establish a “Safe to Report” policy across the military. This bill, along with companion legislation that Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) plan to introduce in the U.S. Senate, would empower survivors of sexual violence to report these incidents by ensuring that they will not face punishment for certain collateral misconduct such as underage drinking or violating curfew, unless aggravating circumstances exist.

I started my journey tackling military sexual assault head-on as a commander at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where the allegations of sexual assault were too high. Our program to address these crimes was later ranked by the Air Force as the number one sexual assault response program—the number one in the Air Force. So, I take this issue seriously. During my first year in the House, a constituent reached out to share with me how she had been sexually assaulted by a fellow Airman and had received a collateral misconduct charge for drinking while a minor. I was outraged to hear that she had been re-victimized and offered to reach out to the new base commander for her, to ask him to review the case. He agreed it was an improper charge and rescinded it as well as charges two other women had received, giving them back their stripes they had earned. We must reassure the victims they are not at fault and this will certainly help them know that.  Read the story here.

This week in the House, we passed H.R. 2153 the Keeping Girls in School Act, which would authorize the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to enter into acquisition, assistance, or financing agreements to address societal, cultural, health, and other barriers that adolescent girls face in accessing quality secondary education. I was a co-sponsor of this bill. 

Last Thursday, I voted against measures repealing the 2002 Authorization for the Use of Military Force in Iraq and blocking tax dollars from being used for military action against Iran without the approval of Congress. While I agree that Congress is overdue in reviewing this authorization, we cannot simply do away with it without a replacement. Furthermore, attaching these two provisions to a Congressional Gold Medal vote for the purpose of preventing an alternative amendment is beneath the dignity of this chamber, shameful by the majority, and disrespectful to the WWII veterans it recognizes. Watch my speech here.

On Monday, I delivered remarks on International Holocaust Remembrance Day to acknowledge my support for H.R. 943, the Never Again Education Act, which would create a federal grant through the Department of Education to implement Holocaust education in middle and high school classrooms. I am one of the bill's original leaders who strongly pushed for its passage, and am very pleased that it passed 393-5. Watch my speech here.

Finally, have you ever wondered what our Washington, D.C. office looks like? I made a quick video tour, which you can view here.  Make sure to watch after the credits...

Thanks for reading and have a great week! - Don