Last week confirmed what every American already knew. The United States is in a recession.

Despite two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, the Biden administration refuses to face the fact that their policies are not working.

Instead, they would rather gaslight American’s into believing the economy is strong, going so far as even redefining “recession.”

Despite this disastrous news, Democrats are doubling down on more spending. For starters, the House voted on the CHIPS and Science Act. Though I support the bill’s goal of encouraging more semiconductor manufacturing in the US, the Senate’s CHIPS-Plus Act adds $79 billion dollars to the deficit, advances the Green New Deal agenda, and leaves loopholes for China to exploit. I ultimately voted no.

Additionally, Senate Democrats announced late last week that they reached an agreement on a revised version of “Build Back Better," now known as the "Inflation Reduction Act." Though they will celebrate how this bill raises money, it raises money through increased taxes.

Before imposing higher taxes, Congress should take a look at the existing bureaucracy and how bloated it has become. Before spending new dollars on new programs, we should sunset ineffective or duplicative federal programs. Irresponsible spending like this is why inflation is draining money out of our pockets, and our economy is so weak. My bill, the Federal Agency Sunset Commission Act of 2021, would be a good place to start.

The Far-Left is once again infringing upon our right to keep and bear arms, as they forced a vote on an “assault weapons” ban. I oppose this attack on the Second Amendment — gun control policies are both ineffective and a flagrant violation of the Constitution.

Data shows increased gun ownership does not lead to more firearm homicides. In fact, certain countries that have fewer guns than the U.S. per 100 people have higher firearm homicide rates.

An “assault weapons” ban has been implemented before and produced no measurable decrease in violent crime. As I have pointed out before, many of the most crime-ridden cities, such as Chicago, New York City, and Los Angeles, have the strictest gun regulations. Crime is rampant in these liberal cities, as criminals commit heinous acts, only to be arrested, and then set free to commit additional crimes. Criminals must be held accountable, and the right of law-abiding citizens to protect themselves and their families must be upheld.

Last week I sent a letter to the Labor Department demanding they investigate The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) over alleged retaliation against the National ICE Council. There are credible concerns that AFGE leadership engaged in misconduct, as well as retaliatory attacks against the National ICE Council. The Department of Labor must thoroughly investigate these complaints.

I also sent a separate letter to AFGE President Everett Kelley demanding he defend himself against allegations that union money was used for, among other things, hush money payments, strippers, prostitutes, and Super Bowl tickets.

You can read about the letters HERE.

Last week, I introduced the Airspace Clearinghouse Enhancement (ACE) Act to protect military bases, such as Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, from encroachment as well as foreign espionage risks.

There is an increasing number of wind farms being developed near military bases. This is especially concerning for bases with military flight training routes. Wind turbines stretch as high as 600 feet, and their encroachment near military bases poses serious safety concerns and national security risks.

Additionally, there are concerns with the foreign investments in these wind farms, particularly from firms connected with China. The United States should not allow foreign entities connected to China to buy up land near U.S. military bases.

The ACE Act would combat these issues by ensuring base commanders with military flight training routes have their voices heard during the siting process of wind turbines, as well as alleviate the concerns of espionage.

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