Good afternoon, and Weekend Update.

The radical left-driven Democrat leadership is choosing obstruction and chaos over the American people. They are demanding to defund ICE, stop enforcement against criminal illegal immigrants, and expose ICE agents to mobs.

Republicans already had ample funding in the original DHS Appropriations bill for body cameras and de-escalation training. What some Democrats really want is to force our federal law enforcement officers to remove their masks, putting them and their families at risk from doxing and harassment stirred up by Democratic leaders.

What we need is cooperation from Democrats, major cities, and their law enforcement to secure our nation and protect American lives. Republicans will always choose law, order, and a secure border.  I joined “Wake Up America” on Newsmax to discuss. Click here or below to watch.

Before heading to the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, I joined “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business to discuss how Democrats would rather shut down the Department of Homeland Security than find a solution.

Much of what they’re asking for in this bill was already included in the original text. They’re doing this as a stunt to satisfy their base. Their goal used to be defund the police. Now it’s defund ICE.

Once again, Democrats have created a mess here — just like the kind of mess they’ve enabled in the streets of Minneapolis amid ongoing tensions over federal law enforcement actions. Click here or below to watch.

IN NEWS YOU WON'T HEAR IN THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA: DHS secured the border, now Dems want to destroy it.

Under the leadership of President Trump, migrant encounters at the southern border have fallen to the lowest level in over 50 years — now Democrats are trying to reverse this progress and abolish immigration enforcement altogether because four years of letting millions of criminal illegals pour into the country wasn't enough for them.

Voters overwhelmingly support President Trump's efforts to deport criminal illegals, and the results have been day and night compared to Biden:

• Two million illegal aliens have self-deported and more than 650,000 have been forcibly removed.
  Border wall construction has resumed.
• The United States murder rate is the lowest in 125 years now that the worst of the worst are off the streets.
• The U.S. saw negative net migration for the first time in 50 years.

Yet Democrats are vowing to reverse these successes by calling to abolish ICE and DHS:

• California Rep. Robert Garcia: "ICE needs to be abolished. It cannot be reformed."
• California Rep. Ro Khanna says ICE should not exist.
• Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson doubles down on abolishing ICE.
• Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says yes to abolishing ICE.
• Illinois Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton: “I want to abolish ICE… it doesn’t matter whose ICE it is.
• Illinois Rep. Delia Ramirez: "We need to abolish ICE...they should not be in any of these cities."
• Illinois Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi: "I want to abolish the funding and Trump's ICE... this is completely unacceptable."
• Illinois Rep. Robin Kelly: "Dismantle ICE, but also Border Patrol...the agency that looks over citizenships...all of it needs to be dismantled."
• Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley: “We need to abolish ICE, Kristi Noem needs to resign or be impeached.”
• Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton: "I've been very vocal about this...[ICE] needs to be abolished."
• Michigan Rep. Shri Thanedar: “There is no way to reform it… we must abolish ICE.”
• Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar: "ICE cannot be reformed, it cannot be rehabilitated, we must abolish ICE for good."
• Minnesota Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan calls to abolish ICE.
• Minneapolis Council Member Jamison Whiting says yes to abolishing ICE.
• Nevada Senator Jacky Rosen: "They are just thugs... we're gonna shut down Homeland Security..."
• New Hampshire U.S. Senate Candidate Karishma Manzur calls to abolish ICE.
• New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson: "We need to dismantle the DHS."
• New Jersey Reps. Rob Menendez & LaMonica McIver calls for ICE to be abolished
• New York Rep. Dan Goldman: "We have to tear it down, abolish it, eliminate..."
• Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee: “We can’t unmask fascism and cruelty and oppression… the call now is to abolish this agency.”
• Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal: "As soon as we get the gavels back, we have to dismantle DHS and ICE and CBP."

President Trump is proving that uncontrolled, mass-illegal immigration was always a choice and Democrats are still choosing an open border.

 

Thank you, President Trump! The Golden Age of American manufacturing is here. Another sign that the America First Agenda is producing results.

House Republicans met with U.S. Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler as part of our Meet the Cabinet series.

Administrator Loeffler explained how President Trump’s pro-growth agenda is helping Main Street by extending the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, cutting waste, and reducing unnecessary regulations. She has already taken numerous steps to refocus the SBA on its main mission by expanding access to capital and improving lending programs, while remaining a constant advocate for American entrepreneurs.

I look forward to continuing to work together to support and fight for small businesses across the country!

I sat down with members of the Pennsylvania Fraternal Order of Police to talk about the work being done to strengthen public safety and support the officers serving our communities on the front lines.

We discussed the FOP’s legislative priorities and my ongoing efforts to ensure law enforcement has the resources, protections, and support necessary to do their jobs safely and effectively.

I’ll continue to be a strong advocate for law enforcement across PA-09, including the officers represented by the PA FOP, and I will always.

At a Financial Services Committee Republicans hearing with Secretary Bessent, we discussed the President’s vision for the American economy compared with Europe's:

Europe’s model:

• Open borders
• Reliance on imports
• Government spending driving growth

The America First Model:

• Main Street over Wall Street
• Strong community banks
• Increasing access to capital for small businesses, farmers, and homeowners
• Smarter, pro-growth capital requirements
• Cracking down on waste, fraud, and abuse

Secretary Bessent said it best:

• The U.S. posted 4.1% growth over the past three quarters.
• Europe just celebrated 0.3% growth.

The America First model works while the European economies continue to decline. Click here or below to watch.

Met with leadership from Synchrony Financial to discuss how private-sector innovation is driving real economic growth in Pennsylvania. We also discussed how to increase access to capital and improve affordability nationwide.

Supporting Main Street, expanding access to capital, and strengthening local economies happen when Washington gets out of the way and lets businesses do what they do best. Pro-growth policies create jobs, encourage investment, and help working families build long-term financial stability.

Later, I met with Vanguard CLO Natalie Lamarque to talk about reducing costs for investors and strengthening transparency in our financial system.

Lower fees, expanded investor choice, and competitive markets are essential to protecting retirement savings and promoting responsible capital formation. Accountability and competition—not overregulation—are what keep our financial system strong and working for Americans.

I had a great meeting with members from the National District Attorneys Association who came from across Pennsylvania to advocate for safer communities and better support for victims.

We discussed various issues, including stopping financial fraud at the local and state levels and legislation to combat the fentanyl crisis. As Chairman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, I’ll continue leading efforts in Congress to crack down on scams, protect consumers, and hold bad actors accountable.

Joined colleagues this morning at the 74th National Prayer Breakfast where we heard some inspiring words on faith from our President.

Also pictured is my guest, Pastor Lorenzo Sewell, who delivered the prayer at President Trump’s inauguration.

At a time of real challenges here at home and around the world, we came together to pray for America, our leaders, and the American people.

ELECTION UPDATE:

As we begin our reelection campaign, we want to share information on how to help us achieve our first goal: filing nominating petitions.

The Commonwealth requires our campaign to collect and file 1,000 signatures from Republicans living in the 9th Congressional District.

Petition circulation runs from February 17th to March 10th. If you would like to circulate or sign a petition, please email Tom Whitehead at [email protected] to contact our campaign. We greatly appreciate any and all support with this mission. 

May God continue to bless our nation. I look forward to seeing you soon,