September 26, 2023: Weekly Newsletter

You may have read this in the news, but we are reaching a significant inflection point with the spending fight in Congress. The government runs out of money at the end of this month, and unfortunately, there has been little progress on reaching a new agreement – largely because of Washington’s shameful addiction to bloated spending and swampy way of doing business.

Now, as we’ve talked about before, Congress has previously handled funding deadlines by first passing something called a “continuing resolution” — which kicks the proverbial deadline ‘can’ down the road while maintaining status quo spending. Then just before Christmas, all the spending bills are combined into a massive multi-thousand page “omnibus” bill that inflates spending to new levels. This is not acceptable.  

Our country’s spending is completely out of control, and things need to change. You may recall that at the beginning of this process, House conservatives secured a promise from leadership to return to a regular order of spending process, where spending gets divided into 12 individual Appropriations bills on different subjects. This allows Congress to address spending the way it’s supposed to be done — responsibly funding some elements of government, and then making cuts on wasteful programs. It should not be an all or nothing approach. 

Here’s what I want you to know: I am committed to working around the clock to resolving this and reaching an agreement where we get our fiscal house in order. It has to be done now. The country is headed over a fiscal cliff, and working families can’t take it any more. I will not vote for anything that rubber stamps the status quo, or saddles you and your kids with trillions in debt that you never asked for. You deserve better.

I am hopeful that over the coming days, we will reach an agreement to quickly vote on individual appropriations bills — as leadership promised — so we can truly address spending responsibly and get America back on a path to success. We will keep you updated throughout the process as best we can.

I am sure you have seen the images on T.V. last week, but the southern border continues to be a complete disaster because of Joe Biden’s policies. Last week, Texas Governor Abbot officially declared an invasion. He was right to do so. 

Remember, Section IV Article IV of the U.S. Constitution requires the federal government to protect states from invasion. It is explicitly the federal government’s job to handle the border. However, the Biden/Mayorkas regime continues refusing to enforce the law and even flagrantly disregards it. It is disgraceful. I commend Governor Abbott and the Texas National Guard for their efforts in securing our border and protecting our communities. At the same time, it’s important to point out that Texas should not have to bear this responsibility. No state has the resources or manpower to combat the multi-billion dollar cartels that run our southern border alone. My team and I are working on multiple pieces of legislation on the matter, supporting impeaching Secretary Mayorkas for his failure, and will do what we can to support Texas’s efforts.

On the topic of border security, I recently spoke on a panel at the Conservative Partnership Institute’s annual partners conference to outline what we’re facing and what we can do to fix it. The numbers are simply staggering, with over 7 million illegal crossings since Biden took office, creating both a national security and humanitarian crisis. We’ve worked with the Texas delegation to develop the Texas border plan, and passed H.R. 2, the most conservative border security bill in modern history. We're now looking at ways we can include the bill in must-pass legislation as a means of getting it in law.

The current system is completely unsustainable, and Congress needs to keep it a top priority for the remainder of the term. Know that my office and I will continue doing everything we possibly can.

My team and I were blessed to visit with a group of pastors from around the country visiting Washington D.C. It was a real privilege to speak with them.

God Bless,

Rep. Michael Cloud

Member of Congress

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