November 22, 2024

Celebrating Our Congressional App Challenge Winners

Every year, students from across the county compete in the Congressional App Challenge, an opportunity to collaborate, create, and solve problems in our own communities. The Challenge was established to foster STEM education in our young people, allowing the United States to continue leading the charge in technology advancement.

Last night, my team celebrated the participants and winners of this year's Congressional App Challenge in CA-45.

Congratulations to high school winners Jeongseop and Niranjan from Whitney High School and junior high winner Naomi from Frank C. Leal Elementary!

Congratulations also to our elementary winners: Jamie, April, Audrey, Nicole, Rachel, Huiseong, Elias, Hayden, Akeera, Piper, Rylen, Alexandra, Alyssa, Chelsea, Olivia, and Ingrid!

Protecting Veteran Benefits

After their service in the military, veterans deserve the very best that our nation has to offer.

In Congress, I’m proud to fight for veteran benefits like affordable housing, wider access to education and jobs, and quality care from the VA. Unfortunately, many veterans face red tape and bureaucracy when they need help the most.

This week, I was proud to vote with my colleagues in Congress in support of the Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act, a bill I originally cosponsored. This important legislation will reform and modernize VA services, expand access to employment and education opportunities, and take steps to tackle veteran homelessness. By cutting red tape, we can improve services for those who have risked their lives to defend our freedom.

You can learn more about my work to support Southern California's veterans, including with legislation that has passed the House, here. 

Defending Our Pacific Ally

As one of our closest allies in the Pacific region, the Filipino people have long shared diplomatic ties with the United States. I’m also proud to represent a significant number of Filipino-Americans in Congress who call Southern California home.

With recent acts of aggression by the CCP against the Philippines, strengthening our ties is all the more pressing.

This week, I joined my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in voting to reaffirm the United State's alliance with the Philippines with House Resolution 837. The United States cannot stand by and allow the Chinese Communist Party to intimidate and prevent other sovereign nations from participating in the global economy.

In Congress, I have proudly spoken out against such aggression by the CCP. You can read more about that here, and find more of my work combating CCP malice here. 

Condemning UCLA's Response to Antisemitism

Funded by taxpayer money, California's public universities are meant to be a hallmark of academic success and foster tomorrow's leaders.

However, recent protests and antisemitic behavior on college campuses have disrupted classes and left many Jewish students feeling unsafe and unwelcome.

Last week, an independent report found that UCLA failed to protect students amid violent campus protests, leading to intervention by the LAPD and the California Highway Patrol. This comes in addition to a report recently released by my House Education and Workforce Committee finding that UCLA’s lack of action threatened campus safety and the civil rights of Jewish students.

Academic institutions should not be hubs of violent protest. As a member of the Committee on Education and Workforce, I've questioned university heads on their response to antisemitic protests and called on university leadership to do more to protect their Jewish students. You can learn more about my work to hold universities accountable for antisemitism here.

What I'm Reading

Thanks for taking the time to read about what I've been doing on behalf of Southern California families. Be sure to connect with my official Facebook, X, and Instagram pages, where I post the latest news and updates. It is an honor to serve you in Congress.

Sincerely,

Rep. Michelle Steel
Member of Congress