Dear Neighbor:

I wanted to take a moment to share an update about how my staff and I have been working for the people of Maryland's Eighth District. It remains a surpassing and singular honor to serve as your Representative in Congress.

As always, I encourage all of my constituents across the Eighth District to connect with me on Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram and Threads. If you need help with a federal agency and want to request my assistance, please complete the online request form here, and my District Office team will be in touch.

All Best,

Jamie Raskin

Rep. Raskin's May in Photos

Pressing for Ethics and Accountability on the Supreme Court

Public outrage surged across America when news broke in May that Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s homes were reportedly seen flying flags associated with right-wing political activism. Shortly after, I joined Rep. Hank Johnson (GA-04) as a founding member of the new Court Reform Now Task Force, a congressional caucus focused on ethics and accountability for the highest court in our land. In May, we twice wrote Justice Alito requesting he recuse himself from the remaining pending matters before the Court related to January 6 and the 2020 election, and I shared my broader thoughts in an op-ed I wrote for the New York Times.

I look forward to continuing to work alongside my Task Force colleagues to restore the integrity of—and corresponding public confidence in—the Supreme Court, including by sounding the alarm about their alleged ethical violations and abuses of power and offering practical solutions.

Leading Democrats on the House Oversight Committee

The month of May continued the challenging and rewarding work I lead as the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee to protect civil liberties, individual rights, and democracy.

As Ranking Member, I joined Senator Whitehouse to call on the Department of Justice to investigate Big Oil’s role in misleading the public about climate change and obstructing action to keep our planet healthy for future generations. This work followed multiple hearings where our committee slowly detangled Big Oil’s twisted web of greed and lies.

In May, I led Oversight Democrats in a hearing centered on supporting the Office of Personal Management’s work to strengthen our nonpartisan, expert federal workforce. This hearing was about protecting OPM staff from political interference so they can focus on doing their jobs. Trump Administration policies continually undermined our government institutions, including by targeting the hardworking men and women in our merit-based civil service. OPM professionals take an oath to the Constitution—not a president—and their work should be in the best interest of our nation, not any one leader.

These are just some of the efforts of the Oversight Committee Democrats, and myself as Ranking Member, engaged in to stand up for truth and protect individual freedoms.

Improving Transparency Around Hydrogen Energy Emissions

Hydrogen energy could play a major role in America’s clean energy transition; unlike fossil fuels, hydrogen fuel can be burned without releasing greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, hydrogen can be extremely energy-intensive to produce, which is why we must pursue production in accordance with our climate and emissions reductions goals. I called on the Department of Energy to provide the public with greater transparency on emissions data for its Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs. Empowering the public and policymakers with this information can help us better understand hydrogen as a domestic energy source and its role in our sustainable future. Check out this piece in Politico E&E News on our efforts.

Establishing a “National Day of Reason”

In May, Rep. Jared Huffman (CA-02) and I introduced a resolution to declare May 4 a “National Day of Reason” in America to emphasize science, common sense and logic as central to American constitutional democracy, and essential preconditions for progress in our government and society at large. With democracy under siege by authoritarians, theocrats and fraudsters everywhere, it is incumbent on all of us to restore truth and facts to their central place in our public discourse.

Announcing the MD-08 Winner of the 2024 Congressional Art Competition

“Caged,” by Jean-Luc Chretien of Kensington, Maryland
Rendered with colored pencil and alcohol marker 

Each year, I am dazzled by the artistic prowess of student artists who enter our Eighth District Congressional Art Competition, and this year was no exception. I am thrilled to announce that Sidwell Friends School student Jean-Luc Chretien of Kensington, Maryland took home the top prize with Caged, a spellbinding and hauntingly beautiful piece of surrealist art, pictured above.

I am exceptionally grateful to Rockville arts center VisArts for lending their support to our art competition for the 8th straight year in a row, hosting an in-person gallery. I also want to express my thanks to the esteemed panel of judges who lent their expertise and experience to our young artists. I encourage you to check out the virtual gallery to enjoy the boundless artistic creativity represented in the art received.

Following our announcement of the winner and our celebratory reception, I was thrilled to feature local artist Levi Robinson as a Local Hero, who graciously joined my distinguished judging panel for the 2024 competition. A studio artist and muralist, Levi has seen his pieces displayed throughout the country and the world.

Addressing Threats to Global Democracy

With democracy under siege around the world, I led colleagues in Congress and Brazilian parliamentarians to recommit ourselves to strengthening democratic institutions at home and abroad. In a joint statement, we recognized the parallels between the events of January 6, 2021, in the United States and January 8, 2023, in Brazil, where serious attempts to overthrow the outcome of democratic elections with fraud and violence shook the moral compass of our nations. We urged legislative representatives from around the world to join us in our commitment to safeguard and strengthen democracy globally.

Celebrating My Class of 2028 U.S. Service Academy Nominees

With a few members of the Class of 2028 MD-08 Service Academy Nominees on Capitol Hill

In Congress, I have the distinct honor and privilege of appointing exceptional Eighth District students to our nation’s service academies. These students matriculate at either the Military Academy in West Point, the Naval Academy in Annapolis, the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point or the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. My appointees earn the pride and appreciation of our Eighth District community. In May, I welcomed my Class of 2028 appointees, their families and members of my appointment panel to a reception celebrating these students’ tremendous commitment to education and service.

If you are a rising high school senior interested in attending a service academy, or know someone who is, please note that applications for the 2029 class are now open until October 1, 2024. You can access the application and learn more about the Service Academy appointment process at my website.

Recognizing the Local Heroes of Maryland's Eighth District

Dr. Zadia Gadsden is the principal of Takoma Park Elementary School, the Washington Post’s 2024 Principal of the Year and our Local Hero. Dr. Gadsden stepped up in the wake of COVID-19, engaging and empowering students to achieve academically, better express themselves and become ambassadors for their school.

Ahead of Memorial Day, we celebrated Rockville Mayor Monique Ashton and Grand Marshal of the Rockville Memorial Day Ceremony and Parade Stephen Johnson. Mayor Ashton and Stephen personify this amazing parade, which is a special tradition in our community to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. I’m proud to report that it is the largest parade of its kind in Maryland.

Local Hero Commander Everett Alvarez, Jr., a Rockville resident, was the first American aviator taken captive in Vietnam during the war and became the second longest held U.S. prisoner of war in history. This month, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1097, the Everett Alvarez, Jr. Congressional Gold Medal Act, which I proudly cosponsored, awarding this Local Hero with this distinct honor in recognition of his exemplary service to our nation.

Promoting Local Safety and Emergency Management

We send immense gratitude to the first responders who leapt to action during the tornado outbreak in early June. I want to take this opportunity to urge everyone in our community to register for Alert Montgomery, if you have not already done so. These real-time notifications will help you and your family stay up to date with local emergency guidance relevant to your home, workplace, child's school or any other locations within Montgomery County.

Constituent Corner

Hey students, we have a fun summer project for you! I am thrilled once again to seek submissions for the annual Congressional App Challenge—a nationwide event to engage student creativity and encourage a passion for science, technology, engineering and math.

While completed projects are not due until November 1st, 2024, students can review the competition rulebook, pre-register and start creating their own app. This will allow the talented students from Maryland’s Eighth Congressional District to get a jumpstart on coding their projects. I cannot wait to see what they will create.

I encourage everyone to watch this Local Heroes segment featuring Cody Gao and Sreeyan Nampally of Wootton High School in Rockville who won our last competition with an app they created called SignMe, an application linking American Sign Language with English speech through real-time translation on your phone.

For more information, please visit my office’s dedicated webpage about the challenge and the official Congressional App Challenge website at CongressionalAppChallenge.us.

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