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Transparency in Congress and a well-informed electorate are vital to preserving our self-governing Constitutional Republic. My constituents deserve to know how their members of Congress vote, which is why I have explained every vote I have cast in Congress since I was first elected.
To read more about my votes and see the full list with explanations of all the legislation considered this week by the House, please click here.
I voted “Yes” on S. 3250, A bill to provide remote access to court proceedings for victims of the 1988 Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. In 1988, 190 Americans, including 35 Syracuse University students and two University of Rochester students, were tragically killed on Pan Am Flight 103. In 2020, the Department of Justice charged Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi with this heinous crime, however, many of the relatives of the victims of this bombing are elderly or physically unable to travel to DC to attend court proceedings. S. 3250 ensures that all the victims’ relatives can have remote access to the court proceedings regardless of their location. This bill passed the House by a vote of 413-7.
I voted “Yes” on Senate Amendment to H.R. 2872, the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations and Other Extensions Act, 2024. Just a few weeks ago, Speaker Johnson came to a historic funding agreement that cuts baseline spending levels by billions of dollars and works to rein in agencies such as the IRS. However, now that the topline details have been agreed to, it will take weeks to work out the finer details of this funding package. To provide the time needed, this bill would extend currently enacted government funding levels through March 1st and March 8th, and temporarily extend many expiring Medicaid, Medicare, HHS, and DHS programs. This will give House Republicans time to secure provisions to roll back the Biden administration’s unconstitutional overreaches and to enact needed reforms to manage the growing catastrophe crisis at our southern border. It is my hope that by early March, we can pass a full-year budget that will deliver for the American people and provide the course correction we most desperately need. Ideally, I would like to see all of our priorities, including the appropriations process, under regular order. However, we simply do not have the nearly unanimous votes necessary in the House to achieve those goals with now a two-seat majority. Unfortunately, the Democrats control the Executive Branch and the Senate, where the priorities and the urgent needs of the American people, especially on the catastrophe at the border, are being ignored. In terms of strategy, a “No” vote on this bill is just another signal to Senate Democrats that we remain divided in the House and the Democrats can continue to ignore the priorities of the American people. Unity among Republicans, not a dangerous partial government shutdown, is crucial to our success. This bill passed the House by a vote of 314-108.
I voted “Yes” on H.R. 6918, the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act. H.R. 6918 would prohibit the Biden administration, through the rulemaking process, from limiting the ability of states to spend Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds on pregnancy centers, clarifying that pregnancy centers do in fact meet the statutory purpose of organizations that qualify for TANF. Currently, the Biden administration proposed rule on pregnancy centers circumvents congressional authority and far exceeds the statutory limits granted to HHS. These centers provide emotional support and tangible benefits for women with unplanned pregnancies, including relationship counseling, prenatal and pregnancy education, pregnancy testing, diapers, baby clothes, and other material support. It is unconscionable that the Biden administration would try to exclude pregnancy centers from TANF. We must do everything we can to promote access to the services that pregnancy centers offer so women can utilize the resources and support they need to choose life. This bill passed the House by a vote of 214-208.
I voted “Yes” on H.R. 6914, the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act. H.R. 6914 ensures that colleges and universities provide students with information regarding resources and accommodations available to pregnant students. Furthermore, this bill requires schools to inform students of the process to file a complaint if their Title IX rights for pregnant students are violated and ensures this information is included in the student handbook, taught at orientation, is available publicly on their website, and provided at student health or counseling centers. Pregnant students should never have to choose between carrying their child to term or completing their degree. I wholeheartedly support this commonsense legislation and was honored to support it on the House floor when it passed the House by a vote of 212-207.
I voted “Yes” on H.R. 5862, to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 relating to authority of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to consolidate, modify, or reorganize Customs revenue functions. The Homeland Security Act of 2002, which created CBP, provides little flexibility to update customs staffing levels or position descriptions to adapt to the current trade environment. Currently, CBP has positions which are designed to enforce U.S. trade laws, facilitate legitimate trade, and protect the American economy. However, these positions are narrowly defined and don’t grant CBP enough flexibility to counter all of today’s existing trade challenges. To address this issue this legislation will help to refocus CBP’s existing resources so that they are able to better respond to a diverse array of trade enforcement issues. This bill passed the House by a vote of 403-9.
I voted “Yes” on H. Res. 957, Denouncing the Biden administration's open-borders policies, condemning the national security and public safety crisis along the southwest border, and urging President Biden to end his administration's open-borders policies. Under the Biden administration’s open-border policies, we have lost operational control of our own borders, creating a major national security and humanitarian crisis. This crisis has not only exacerbated the opioid and fentanyl epidemic facing our country, but is also directly harming our local communities where unvetted illegal immigrants are being settled, forcing the closure of important community areas and straining public services. I have repeatedly called for the impeachment of both President Biden and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas over their clear dereliction of duty in enforcing our nation’s laws and securing the border. It is shameful that this administration continues to stick its head in the sand and ignore the ongoing crisis facing our nation. I urge the Senate to pass H.R. 2, which passed the House last year and is the strongest border security package to ever pass in Congress. We must continue fighting to secure our borders and enforce our nation’s laws. This resolution passed the House by a vote of 225-187.
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