Dear neighbor, 

This week I returned to a very busy week in Washington. Following the recent opening of more housing for veterans at the West Los Angeles VA, I was eager to get back to work on behalf of our nation’s heroes alongside my colleagues in Congress. Unfortunately, the extreme MAGA Republican House majority passed spending cuts that would hurt veterans and everyday Americans. They are pushing their disastrous bill in order to threaten a default on our nation’s debt, which would be catastrophic for our economy. 

The draconian cuts to all non-defense federal spending proposed by extreme MAGA Republicans would be devastating to our nation’s veterans. Further, they would endanger the viability of federal programs that millions of Americans rely on to make ends meet and put food on the table, like Social Security, Medicare, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), among others. Speaker McCarthy and his extreme MAGA colleagues are holding our economy hostage—they are demanding universal cuts to spending across the board, or they are threatening to crash our economy. Let me be clear: there is nothing “fiscally responsible” about defaulting on the national debt. It would eliminate hundreds of thousands of jobs, tank the stock market, and raise costs for everyone. I spoke about the danger this irresponsible proposal poses for our nation’s veterans during this week’s Democratic Caucus leadership press conference. I hope you’ll check it out below. 

On the House Floor this week, rather than proposing legislation to protect our nation from a devastating default, extreme MAGA Republicans focused on demonizing immigrants, including vulnerable children. The Child Deportation Act is a cruel, unworkable, and unserious bill. Instead, it would jail families indefinitely and close off pathways for people legally seeking asylum.  

House Democrats are focused on solutions: my colleagues and I have voted in favor of investments in border safety and personnel, worked to open more legal pathways to citizenship for migrants and asylum seekers, and have begun to address the root causes of migration. We know that American families and small businesses are calling for broad reforms to our immigration system. Democrats are ready to work with Republicans on commonsense long-term immigration solutions. But we will never support cruel, extreme policies like the Child Deportation Act. 

Here’s what else I’ve been working on this week: 

• Celebrated Teacher Appreciation Week and National Nurses Week! Teachers and nurses are absolutely essential to a happy, healthy community. Thank you for all you do! 
  
• Joined the Congressional Dads Caucus for a discussion about the importance of a national paid leave policy. 
  
• Co-hosted the House Democratic Caucus’s reception for Jewish American History Month! As antisemitic incidents are on the rise in our community and around the country, I’m committed to rooting out bigotry in all forms and continuing my work on issues that impact the Jewish American community. 
  
• Stood together with my colleagues on the steps of the U.S. Capitol to acknowledge Mental Health Awareness Month! We wore green to show our support for those struggling with mental illness and raise awareness about the importance of mental health care.  

PHOTO OF THE WEEK: I’m always pleased to join my colleague and friend Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar at our weekly Democratic Caucus leadership press conferences, and this week was no different. House Democrats are united in our goal to deliver lower costs, better paying jobs, and safer communities for American families. You can watch the full press conference here.  

YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL TOWN HALL: I'm happy to invite you to our Youth Town Hall this Saturday, May 13 at Da Vinci Schools in El Segundo! Young leaders from our community will share updates on our Youth Advisory Council's work over the past year. To RSVP, click here.

UP, UP, AND AWAY! If you’re planning international travel, don’t forget to check your passport’s expiration date! Passports that will expire within a year should be updated. Please reach out to my Los Angeles office if you or your family need assistance with passport renewal. 

My office has been responding to an increased number of requests for passport assistance. Due to a higher volume of requests across the country, standard passport processing times are now 10 to 13 weeks, while expedited processing time has risen to seven to nine weeks. If you need to apply for a new passport in person, please click here. If you have a passport that will expire within six months and need to renew it via mail, or if you need to correct or change your current passport, please click here. If you’ve already applied for a new or renewed passport and would like to check the status of your request, please click here.  

Once your passport is up to date and you’re checked in for your flight, check out the Federal Aviation Administration’s new Airline Customer Service Dashboard. This tool provides information about airlines’ commitments to families flying with small children or customers experiencing significant delays to their flight plans. Check it out here! 

For more information on my work in Congress, please visit my website at lieu.house.gov and follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have any questions or concerns, please call my D.C. office at (202) 225-3976 or my Los Angeles district office at (323) 651-1040.   

I look forward to updating you again soon.  

Sincerely, 

Ted W. Lieu

Member of Congress