Dear friends,
 
2020 has not been easy on Louisiana. We have suffered through the coronavirus pandemic, one of our worst hurricane seasons on record, and painful job losses. But Louisianians have been through trials before, and I’m working to make sure we’ll recover from these challenges and enter 2021 stronger than ever.
 
Fighting for Louisiana’s health and jobs
 
The coronavirus lockdown has cost Louisianians thousands of jobs, and I’ve been fighting hard this year to support job creators, workers, and families.
 
I voted to establish the Paycheck Protection Program, which has been a lifeline for our small businesses and the communities they serve. To build on that success, I introduced two bills that would streamline forgiveness for Paycheck Protection Program loans. One of those would focus on getting relief to parishes with major disaster declarations from Hurricane Laura.
 
This December, I also introduced the Conservation Funding Protection Act to make sure oil producers can keep their access to energy reservoirs on the Outer Continental Shelf. Louisianians produce a lot of the energy that fuels America’s economy, and I won’t stop working to defend these jobs. 

Louisiana needs vital hurricane relief funds
 
It’s humbling to see how Louisianians have banded together in the wake of Hurricane Laura—which did up to $14 billion in damage to our state—and Hurricanes Delta and Zeta.
 
We shouldn’t have to rebuild alone, though. I introduced the Hurricane Laura Recovery Opportunity Zones Act to increase funding for areas that have been hit hard by the storms, like southwest and central Louisiana. I also led the Louisiana delegation in asking President Trump for more federal disaster funds for our state because people are still hurting as we head into the holidays.

I visited southwest Louisiana immediately following Hurricane Laura so that I could help Washington understand the incredible damage the Category 4 storm caused.

Upholding your constitutional rights
 
Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a fellow Louisianian, is an incredibly qualified judge. While Democrats continue to war against any jurist who wants to be faithful to the Constitution as the founders penned it, Senate Republicans confirmed Justice Barrett. As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I saw the judge’s intellect and integrity up close. I voted to confirm Justice Barrett to the Supreme Court because she will uphold our constitutional rights, which continue to be under attack.
 
Gun control advocates, for example, expressed “grave concerns” about Justice Barrett because the Second Amendment makes them uncomfortable. I’m concerned, however, that bureaucrats are denying veterans’ rights to bear arms. This fall, I introduced the Veterans’ Second Amendment Protection Act to end the unsettling status quo. Right now, the existing process denies due process for certain veterans, and, as a result, they can’t own or buy firearms.
 
The Second Amendment is one of the cornerstones of our liberty, and veterans should be able to enjoy the rights that they fought so hard to protect.

It was a pleasure to speak with Judge Amy Coney Barrett ahead of her confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Defending Louisianians from fraud at home and abroad
 
This year, more than 1,000 Louisianians are still suffering after losing much of their life savings in Allen Stanford’s Ponzi scheme. As part of the Senate Banking Committee, I wrote to the attorney general asking the Department of Justice to quickly return to Stanford’s victims $110 million held by a Swiss bank.
 
Honest, hardworking Louisianians should not suffer from fraud at the hands of American criminals or foreign regimes. That’s why I introduced the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which will forbid foreign companies from trading on U.S. stock markets if they refuse to play by the same rules as other businesses.
 
Americans have already lost millions of dollars because of Chinese companies’ fraud, and it is unacceptable that Chinese companies are currently allowed to trade on American stock markets without letting us see their accounting books. Just days ago the House and Senate unanimously sent my bill to the president’s desk.
 
The bottom line is that many Louisianians rely on U.S. stock markets for their retirement and education savings, and the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act would guarantee that their money is safeguarded against fraud at the hands of businesses tied to Communist China.
 

 
I hope you and your family have time to rest and thank God for our many blessings this Christmas. Becky and I are praying for you in this holy season and hope that your new year is full of joy and hope.

Sincerely,