Article 4, Section 4 of the Constitution clearly states that the federal government should protect states from invasion. Weekly Newsletter: June 23nd, 2022 Securing Our Border Article 4, Section 4 of the Constitution clearly states that the federal government should protect states from invasion. Instead of carrying out its constitutional duty to secure our border, the Biden Administration is leaving states like Texas to foot the bill for securing our border. To protect Texans, the state government has allocated money to secure the border, mainly through Operation Lone Star. Operation Lone Star moved law enforcement to the southern border to stop illegal immigrants, as an estimated 134,000 illegal immigrants have already been apprehended. However, just last month the Biden administration set a record for most border crossings at a staggering 239,416. Ultimately, it is not the state’s responsibility to secure our border, which is why I cosponsored the Lone Star Reimbursement Act. This legislation would reimburse Texas $1.4 billion for Operation Lone Star. As a border state, Texas is severely impacted by illegal immigration and should not have to bear the financial burden of securing the border. It is past time for this Administration to enforce the laws on the books and return to Trump-era policies, which are clearly more effective than current policies. Demanding Government Accountability Americans are facing a number of problems right now: record inflation, rising gas prices, the ongoing border crisis, and a shortage of baby formula. Instead of holding a hearing on any of these problems in order to discuss solutions, Democrats on the House Oversight’s Economic and Consumer Policy Subcommittee chose to conduct a hearing on flea collars for pets. Without question, pets have a positive impact on our lives. However, of the many problems facing Americans right now, this issue is not a top priority. As the subcommittees Ranking Member, I made a point of that in the committee hearing. We need to use the committee’s resources to conduct oversight of the many problems created under this Administration’s watch. This has been a problem since Biden took office: House Democrats refusing to hold this Administration accountable for the impact of their policies on Americans. You can watch me discuss this HERE. Protecting Our Families Last week, Democrats rammed several radical bills through the House Oversight Committee, including one which would require all federal surveys and the decennial census to collect information on sexual orientation and gender identity. This bill also included a provision where a third party could report someone as gay or transgender without the consent of the individual. Since this bill is about federal data collection, it is important that terms be clearly and scientifically defined. If we can’t define what a male or what a female is, then the data collected will not be useful to federal agencies. For example, when the FDA is approving a new drug, they must be able to evaluate how it might affect males and females differently as a result of their biological differences. I offered two amendments to the bill. The first would combat woke gender ideology by requiring the federal government to define male and female. The second of which would prevent someone from abusing the third-party reporting system by providing information about a person without his or her consent. Another amendment offered by one of my colleagues, which I supported, would prevent minors from being asked questions about their sexual orientation or gender identity. What's particularly concerning about Democrats' approach is their fight to ensure that a "knowledgable proxy" would be able to "survey" children about gender and sexual orientation without the knowledge or permission of parents. All Democrats on the committee voted against these amendments. Though they will claim to “believe in science” and “trust the experts,” this vote proves that they believe science and trust the experts so long as it advances their political agenda. In Other News: Meeting With Texans: Last week, the Texas delegation welcomed 125 high school students to our nation's capital. It was a pleasure to meet the 7 students from the 27th Congressional District and I look forward to welcoming many more Texans to Washington DC in the future! Fighting for Fiscal Responsibility: Our national debt, which is well over $30 trillion, is a looming economic catastrophe that we are unprepared for. I recently joined a fellow Texas Representative Jodey Arrington to address this issue on the House Floor. You can watch my speech HERE. God Bless, Rep. Michael Cloud 27th District, Texas Know someone who would benefit from this update? Invite them to subscribe HERE. 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