e-News 7/20/2018

Statement

Holding Russia Accountable

Russian interference in our domestic elections - past and present - dominated the headlines this week.

First, the President held a news conference in Helsinki, Finland alongside Russian President Vladmir Putin and seemed to side with Putin over the U.S. intelligence community over Russian interference in the 2016 election.

For those who have not seen my statement about the President's performance, let me repeat it:

"It is unacceptable that the President of the United States would deny the findings of our own intelligence community on Russian meddling in the last election and then fail to publicly demand an end to these attacks on our democracy. The American people have every right to be upset!"

Later in the week, when asked if Russia is still targeting the United States and our midterm congressional elections, the President responded "no" - breaking with his top intelligence official. The Director of National Intelligence, Dan Coates, warned earlier that "red lights" are blinking with regard to Moscow's plans to again meddle in our election, spy talk used only when a threat is imminent.

"We have been clear in our assessment of Russian meddling in our 2016 elections and their ongoing, pervasive efforts to undermine our democracy," Coats said.

The President went on to declare: "There has never been a president as tough on Russia as I have been."

Actions speak louder than words, Mr. President. The United States must erase all ambiguity, hold Russia accountable and end its unprovoked attacks on our political system and way of life!

Learn more about the recent indictment of 12 Russian military operatives accused of interfering with America's 2016 election here.

House Passes Bipartisan "JOBS & Investor Confidence Act"

In a near unanimous vote of 406-4, this week the House passed the bipartisan "JOBS and Investor Confidence Act of 2018." The bill - which is comprised of 32 individual pieces of legislation that have passed either the Financial Services Committee or the House this Congress with bipartisan support - was the latest installment of "Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act" legislation aimed at helping small businesses, entrepreneurs and investors by reforming our capital markets.

S. 2155 includes provisions to: ease regulations on "angel investors" and expand the definition of "accredited investors" to make it easier for startup companies and small businesses to attract investments needed to grow and create jobs; make it easier for companies to go public by extending on-ramp exemptions for emerging growth companies (EGCs) to give them more time to financially sustain costs and requirements associated with full compliance; ease securities regulations on Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) to increase opportunities for everyday investors; and cut red tape on asset managers so that Main Street investors don't have to shoulder the costs of burdensome, unnecessary regulations.

This is positive legislation for American entrepreneurs and job creation. We're lifting burdensome regulations from the backs of small banks, credit unions, and small businesses, removing barriers to lending and expansion. The JOBS and Investor Confidence Act of 2018 will help sustain 3% economic growth and ensure we are able to compete globally with countries like China.

To learn more, please visit.

Two More Appropriations Bills Approved by the House

The House this week approved a package of two fiscal year 2019 Appropriations bills, including a bill funding the Interior and Environment and a bill funding Financial Services and General Government.

These bills fund vital programs across the federal government, including those that make Americans safer, protect our nation's resources, and create jobs, especially in America's small businesses. The package targets resources to programs that will help boost economic growth and opportunity, protect consumers and investors, promote an efficient federal court system, and help stop financial crime. This important legislation also makes key investments to address many of the other challenges facing our nation - such as providing funds to fight the crushing opioid epidemic and to stop cyber-attacks.

I look forward to working with our Senate colleagues to get these critical bills signed into law as soon as possible.

For the text of the draft bill, please visit.

For the draft bill reports, please visit:

Interior and Environment

Financial Services and General Government

Advancing the BUILD Act

The United States always needs additional avenues and tools to pursue our foreign policy objectives and protect our own national security. This week, the House approved the Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development (BUILD) Act of 2018 which would consolidate various overseas development-finance programs into a reformed United States International Development Finance Corporation (USDFC). The new agency will have strong linkages to the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and is designed to spur market-based, private-sector development and economic growth in less-developed countries and advance the foreign policy and national security interests of the United States.

This new development finance institution will enable our nation's businesses to be much more competitive in some of today's fastest growing markets around the world while working to fight global poverty.

The Senate must now act to pass the BUILD Act.

For more information, please visit.

Salute: To Justin McCarthy, a recent graduate of Hopatcong High School, who built a space observatory in the center of his high school's courtyard as part of his Eagle Scout project. The observatory is now being used as a teaching tool by the district's Camp Innovate, an academic summer camp for Hopatcong children. Read the whole story by Eric Obernauer in the New Jersey Herald here.

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