A Failed State of the Union Address

The number one issue for my constituents — and millions of other Texans — is the southern border. President Biden's State of the Union address last night would have been a great opportunity for him to announce he'll start taking the crisis seriously by enforcing our nation's laws and returning to the policies that worked under the Trump administration.

Unsurprisingly, he did none of that, instead painting a falsely rosy picture — not only of our southern border, but also of the economy and his foreign policy accomplishments.

He also didn't mention Afghanistan — his biggest foreign policy blunder — even once. But I refuse to let his deadly and chaotic withdrawal be swept under the rug.

I was honored to bring Christy Shamblin as my guest to the State of the Union last night. Christy is the mother-in-law of Marine Sergeant Nicole Gee, one of the 13 servicemembers who was killed during the failed withdrawal. Her presence was a sobering reminder this administration must be held accountable.

I joined Harris Faulkner on Fox News this week to discuss Christy and her daughter-in-law's story.

Click to watch

I also appeared with Christy on CNN, where she revealed President Biden has not responded to her family's repeated requests for a meeting.

This is unfortunately emblematic of the Biden administration’s failure to adequately plan for the U.S. withdrawal. President Biden wants Americans to forget about this catastrophe, but I will not rest until his administration is held accountable and the Gold Star families, veterans, and the American people get the answers they deserve.

Click below to watch our interview, and click here to read more about it from the Daily Wire.

Click to watch

In order to get these answers, I am conducting a thorough investigation of the Biden administration's failed Afghanistan withdrawal. For months, I have repeatedly requested documents from the State Department's After-Action Review on Afghanistan, which would give me and my committee a better view of what went wrong and who was responsible.

After threatening to hold Secretary Blinken in contempt for withholding these documents, he finally agreed to produce them — starting today. In other words, Blinken blinked.

I am continuing to work in good faith and trust the secretary will deliver all of these documents so my committee and I can conduct a full review that gets to the bottom of this tragedy and helps to ensure nothing like this happens ever again.

Honoring Laken Riley, Protecting Other Americans

This week, I was honored to cosponsor — and vote for — the Laken Riley Act, which would force ICE to detain any illegal immigrant who commits a form of theft in America.

Laken Riley's life ended far too soon when an illegal immigrant murdered her at the University of Georgia last month. Her murderer had previously been arrested in New York City for theft and endangerment of a child, but he was released before ICE could issue a detainer and place him in removal proceedings.

Let's be clear: The Biden administration welcomed Laken Riley's murderer into this country. A Democrat sanctuary city released him, knowing he was a criminal. And this week, 170 House Democrats voted against a bill — named in Laken’s honor — to prohibit this from happening again.

They should all be ashamed.

Thankfully, the bill passed the House, and I urge the Senate to take it up without delay.

ICYMI: Rep. McCaul TV Coverage

McCaul on Brazos Valley's KBTX News

"I know the border probably better than anybody. If [President Biden] really wanted to go see where the action is, he should have gone to Eagle Pass, for instance. ... But he goes to Brownsville, which I don't think [was] by accident; it was by design. It's one of the safest border communities."