Hello,

This Independence Day, I want to take a moment to come together and remember our nation's founding ideals -- freedom, liberty, and justice for all. I want to recognize the circumstances that surround this year’s celebration of the Fourth of July as our country is grappling with long overdue efforts to address systemic racism while battling a pandemic that has taken far too many lives. And I want to take a moment to thank our military personnel who put their lives on the line for those ideals.

Many of us are spending today with our families, but we should take a moment to thank those who are away from their families serving our nation abroad. The men and women of our military are spending today keeping us safe. I had the opportunity to serve alongside our military in Afghanistan when I was a civilian advisor to the Commander. We had a BBQ in the field across from my office where we celebrated our nation’s birthday. Everyone had a great time with great food, but everyone missed their families. And everyone knew that our national security doesn’t take a day off.

I’m humbled by that experience of getting to work alongside our brave men and women in Afghanistan, and when I visited Afghanistan last year as a Member of Congress, I got to stop back into the field across the street from my old office and say thanks to several servicemembers from our part of New Jersey and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. And I reflect on how today, I’m sure they are having a BBQ there in that same field as they work to protect us. I hope they have some time to take a moment to relax and celebrate.

Let’s all take a moment and say thank you to those that protect us and ensure the freedoms that our nation fought so hard for years ago. I've often said that when I was in Afghanistan, no one asked us if we were Republicans or Democrats -- we worked together to keep our nation safe.

As we continue the fight for racial justice and address the pandemic head-on, I will also be thinking of the sacrifices that keep our nation safe. And today, I hope you'll spend a moment with me to think of those who are in harm's way right now as we celebrate -- even if the celebration is a little different.

Thank you and stay safe,

Andy