The Conaway Chronicle

—The Conaway Chronicle—

December 19, 2005 - Volume 1, Issue 20

We have been hard at work this week trying to finish up our 2005 agenda. We stayed in session through the weekend to make sure that no stone was left unturned before we reconvene in early 2006.

First of all, last weekend I traveled to Waco to welcome home the Texas National Guard who had been serving in Iraq for the past year. It is always an honor for me to be able to shake the hands of these brave men and women that serve our great nation with such bravery and honor. I am very proud of what we are accomplishing in Iraq. Our troops are fighting for a just cause and they are executing a winning strategy. We must continue to stand behind our troops if we are going to win the War in Iraq and ultimately be victorious in the global War on Terror.

On Wednesday, the House passed the conference report on H.R. 3199, the USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005, by a vote of 251 to 174. This terrorism prevention legislation will help protect our homeland. Since the devastation our nation faced on September 11, 2001, the PATRIOT Act has played a vital role in ensuring the safety of every American. This bill guarantees that our law enforcement personnel will continue to have the tools they need to carry on the fight against terrorism and protect our nation from future attacks without infringing on our constitutional right to privacy. The bill was temporarily defeated in the Senate due to a threat of a filibuster, but I am optimistic that it will pass in the coming days.

Thursday marked an extraordinary day in Iraq. Iraqi citizens went to the polls for a third time this year for what turned out to be the most successful election in Iraq thus far. The Iraqi people struck a powerful blow to the terrorist and rejectionist elements of the Iraqi insurgency. By voting for their first permanent, democratically elected government, Iraqis have determined their own destiny and reached an important benchmark drawing the U.S. closer to victory in Iraq. There was also heavy participation by the Sunnis, who had shunned balloting last January. The Iraqi people are showing the world that they want to live in freedom. This was an historic day for Iraq, and an historic day for freedom.

Friday night, the House voted to pass H.R. 4437, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act. This legislation will strengthen border patrol and surveillance capabilities and establish operational control of our borders to prevent unlawful entry. It also includes provisions for more border patrol agents, strategic fence placement along the southern border and technology such as unmanned aerial vehicles and electronic sensors to monitor the border. The bill also eliminates the so-called "catch-and-release" practice of apprehending illegal entrants, only to release them due to a lack of detention space. The new legislation requires all apprehended illegal immigrants to remain in custody until removed from the country.

While securing our borders is an important step toward defending our homeland, meaningful immigration reform must consist of much more than just added border patrol agents, taller fences and improved technology. There are two types of immigrants that enter our country illegally: those that come into our country for economic purposes to work and provide a better life for their families, and those that enter to do us harm. A non-amnesty temporary laborer program will allow border patrol agents to more productively focus their efforts on the criminals and potential terrorists crossing the border. Early next year, the Senate plans to begin debate on a comprehensive immigration reform bill and I am optimistic that they will include a rational temporary worker program in their legislation.

Sunday was the final day of the first session of the 109th Congress and it proved to be significant. The House passed the Defense Appropriations bill that will fully fund the Department of Defense and ensure that our troops have the necessary funds to fight and win the Global War on Terror. Included in this legislation were several important provisions that include the authorization for drilling in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), a one percent across-the-board reduction in federal spending, funding to combat the Avian Flu, and additional federal relief to the Gulf Coast. Of the many additional provisions in the bill, I am most satisfied by the ANWR provision that will enable more domestic drilling to take place and to address the long-term issue of rising oil and natural gas costs, in addition to reducing our dependency on foreign sources of energy. Congress also finalized the Deficit Reduction Act that will reduce Federal spending nearly 42 billion dollars over the next five years through a series of savings and common sense reforms.

Congress will not reconvene until late January. I am looking forward to spending some quality time visiting with constituents in District 11 over the break. I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a safe and happy New Year. We will be back with you early next year ready and eager to start moving forward on our 2006 agenda.

The Conaway Chronicle will be issued every Monday following when Congress is in session. I hope that you will find it informative and it will help you stay informed of my legislative activities. In the meantime, if you have any questions, concerns or suggestions for future issues of The Conaway Chronicle, please email me from the website at www.house.gov/conaway or don't hesitate to call me at (202) 225-3605. Also, make you sure check out my new blog at www.conawayblog.com. Thanks for all of your comments in response to the "Message from a Marine" letter that I sent out last week. I have posted a few of the emails that I received in support of the troops on my blog. Click here to read them!

http://conaway.house.gov/newsletter/simple12-19-05.htm