Good afternoon and welcome to our Week-End Update.
I want to begin by thanking all of our campaign volunteers,
supporters and committed Republican voters in the 9th
District for signing my petitions. Today, we made our initial filing
to qualify for the ballot. Our campaign asks that you continue to
circulate and sign petitions. On Tuesday, we will be filing our final
supplemental petition signatures. If you have additional petitions and
need to arrange a pick-up, please contact our Field Campaign Manager
Rob Bresnahan at [email protected].
As part of my commitment
to applying business practices to government, I am determined to only
spend tax dollars in a manner that benefits our District. As a
Congressman, it is not sufficient to simply talk about spending tax
dollars more responsibly. We have to walk the walk. For 2019, our
office returned $159,962 or 11.8% of our annual office budget, to the
U.S. Treasury. WFMZ
covered the story.
This week, our nation's economy continues to show strength.
January's job’s report came in strong and serves as another reliable
indicator of our economy’s strength. Unemployment is low and more jobs
are coming. In fact, we have over 1 million open jobs across the
nation. Closing the skills gap by increasing job training programs and
apprenticeships is essential to developing a 21st Century Workforce. A
recent Press-Enterprise editorial
highlighted that Vo-Tech seniors are earning $18 an hour to start. The
Pledge to America’s Workers is driving skills training and placing
more workers in well-paying jobs nationwide. President Trump has
proposed a significant funding increase for career education. CTE
schools play an essential role in our District and nationwide in
developing a 21st Century workforce. President Trump is putting
workers first and putting America first.
On Wednesday, I attended an event with the National
Association of Manufacturers (NAM) where they awarded White House
advisor Ivanka Trump an award for her support of manufacturing. She
was the inaugural recipient of the association's Alexander Hamilton
Award. Ivanka Trump understands the issue of ensuring that Americans
are equipped with the skills necessary for the jobs of today and
tomorrow.
The President’s Budget for America’s Future doesn’t saddle future
generations with debt. To ensure that we always maintain fiscal
restraint, I introduced the BASIC Act to provide a full outlook on how
new federal spending impacts national debt. This is common sense.
In that same vein, I recently spoke at a recent hearing with Acting
Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought about
the budget about the issue of a runaway national debt. Thankfully, the
President’s budget proposal exercises fiscal restraint, roots out
waste, fraud, and abuse, and focuses funding in critical areas like
national defense, skills training, and veterans. President Donald J.
Trump leads from the front, proving the government can do more with
less. I applaud Acting Secretary Russell Vought on working to reform
government, not reduce available programs.
This week, I attended a meeting alongside the Republican members of
the House Budget Committee with the Office of Management and Budget
Director and Staff to discuss the President’s budget in detail.
In News You Won’t Read In The Mainstream Media:
President Trump and Congressional Republicans are
investing in forgotten communities. These policies are spurring
investment to revitalize hurting communities and unleash their
economic potential.
- President Trump’s historic tax cuts established Opportunity Zones
to incentivize long-term investments in low-income communities
nationwide.
- There are 8,760 designated Opportunity Zones, home to nearly 35
million Americans in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and 5
Territories. Our District contains 10 Opportunity Zones.
- Opportunity Zones are projected to spur $100 billion in private
investment in these communities.
- Opportunity Zones are a powerful vehicle for bringing economic
growth and job creation to the American communities that need them the
most.
- The median family income in these communities is 37 percent below
the State median.
- The average poverty rate in an Opportunity Zone is more than 32
percent.
- President Trump launched the White House Opportunity and
Revitalization Council – which has already identified more than 180
regulatory reforms to encourage investment.
One of my top priorities is to foster economic revitalization in
our District. We have 10 Opportunity Zones tracts in our District.
This program will help to create an opportunity for all by spurring
new jobs, promoting long-term investment, and building greater
prosperity for generations to come. The Opportunity Zone incentive
offers capital gains tax relief to investors for new investment in
designated areas. Investment benefits include deferral of tax on prior
gains as late as 2026 if the amount of the gain is invested in a
Qualified Opportunity Fund. The benefits also include tax forgiveness
on gains on that investment if the investor holds the investment for
at least ten years. (Pictured below at a meeting last year with
White House officials in Tamaqua discussing federal Opportunity
Zones)
This week, I penned an editorial that ran in the Wilkes Barre
Times-Leader regarding the House Democrat’s failed impeachment
effort. The editorial was entitled, “Let’s
bridge troubled waters,” and can be read by clicking here. I have
spoken at great lengths about the impeachment efforts and how they
were a completely partisan witch-hunt against our President. My hope
is that with this sad chapter in American history in our rearview
mirror, Democrat leadership in the House will be willing to work with
Republicans to start working on the priorities that are truly
important to Americans.
The New Hampshire Presidential Primary took place on Tuesday and it
was certainly a tale of two different elections. First, President
Trump was victorious, which is not really news as he ran without
serious opposition. But what is news is the amazing number of votes he
received. (See chart below). President Trump received over double the
number of votes President Barack Obama received in 2012, President
George W. Bush received in 2004, President Bill Clinton received in
1996 and President Ronald Reagan in 1984.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Party's presidential contest continues to
be an unmitigated disaster. Each candidate continues to promote
agendas that are far-left and it does not appear they are any closer
to having a nominee. Every Primary Election has proven one thing...
President Trump is in a solid position and I believe the below
political cartoon encapsulates the current state of the race.
On the Campaign Trail: Our team continued to travel around the
District attending events and collecting petition signatures.
We attended a Young Republican petition signing party last weekend
with an impressive group of young patriots. We had a great
conversation about current affairs.
We attended the Carbon County GOP Dinner on Wednesday. (Field
Campaign Manager Rob Bresnahan, Beaver Meadow councilman Jim Leonard
and Tom Gerhard pictured below)
Today,
President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will take a lap in The
Beast prior to the start of the Daytona 500. Keeping America
Great. Start Your Engines.
On a final note, I enjoyed a very proud moment as a father as I was
afforded the opportunity to congratulate the Dallas High School
Mountaineers football team, the team my son competed on, for their
great season last year. Dallas High School finished as the runner-up
for the Pennsylvania State AAAA Championship.
Thank you and we will see you soon,