Newsletter: Enforcing Immigration Laws, Hosting District Roundtables, Working Towards ACA Repeal

Statement

Vilsack, Yoder disagree on Immigration

In January, the House of Representatives with my support passed HR 240 - the 2015 Department of Homeland Security Appropriations bill, which fully funds DHS through Fiscal Year 2015. The bill includes all the funding necessary to defend our homeland and enforce our immigration laws.

However, Senate Democrats are refusing to let the bill come to a vote by filibustering because they, along with Secretary Vilsack and the rest of the Administration, support the President's assertion that he can ignore the law and grant amnesty to million of illegal immigrants without the approval of Congress.

Stalling debate on a bill that funds DHS over an unconstitutional executive action that was recently halted by a federal judge is senseless. Congress is appropriately utilizing its power of the purse in this situation to restrict an Administration that has stepped outside the bounds of its constitutional authority and is attempting to ignore the enforcement of federal law.

I urge the Senate to move to consideration of the House-approved bill and vote to fund our homeland security.

Trade Roundtable with Secretary of Agriculture

It was a privilege join Senator Pat Roberts and cohosts BNSF Railway and Dairy Farmers of America in welcoming Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to Kansas last week to discuss the important trade issues facing the US Congress.

Trade has a major effect on our Kansas economy, with agriculture producers exporting almost $5 billion in products as recently as 2012. This is an area in which Congress can work with the Administration, with the President expressing interest in creating more market access for our agriculture products in Asia under the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). This is a trade agreement between the United States and twelve Asian nations that has been under negotiations for a little over four years that will provide more markets for Kansas agriculture producers to expand business, which is another important and necessary way to grow our economy.

Another point of focus during the discussion was the stalled negotiations between the ports and dockworkers' union that had brought cargo to a standstill at our west coast ports. The delay had cost meat exporters more than $40 million per week.

I joined 83 of my colleagues in writing a letter to both parties in the negotiations to resolve this dispute in a timely manner. Additionally, I cosponsored H Res 108, which called on President Obama to invoke executive authority under the Taft-Hartley Act on grounds of national interest if the conflict was not able to be resolved.

Thankfully, the two sides came to a tentative five-year agreement on Friday. This is great news for Kansas farmers, ranchers, and small business who could not have afforded a protracted shutdown.

Veterans Suicide Roundtable

Last week, I was honored to work with Johnson County Community College to host a Veterans Suicide Prevention Roundtable Discussion. This was an excellent opportunity that brought together veterans, Veterans Administration staff, college counselors, and non-profit mental healthcare providers to discuss the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, the first bill passed by the new Congress with my full support. The bill, a great example of bipartisanship, was signed into law by President Obama on February 12 and is critical to our efforts to help reduce military and veteran suicides and improve access to quality mental healthcare.

I also toured the new Student Veterans and Military Resource Center at JCCC. The resource center is co-located with the offices of Vet Success on campus. It is staffed by a full-time VA employee who provides information on G.I. Bill eligibility, benefits and other resources.

I want to thank everyone at JCCC including President Dr. Joe Sopcich who welcomed us, and all who took the time to take part in this important discussion.

41 Action News Coverage of Email Privacy Act

We are now up to 242 cosponsors for my bill to update our digital privacy laws, the Email Privacy Act.

Right now, the federal government is using an arcane 1986 law to conduct warrantless searches of the personal email accounts and other digital communication of the American people. The last time Congress updated our email privacy laws, we were two years removed from the release of the first Macintosh computer. It's time Congress modernized these outdated statutes to ensure that the rights protected by the Fourth Amendment extend to Americans' email correspondence and digital storage.

Housing Roundtable and Juniper Gardens Tour

Last week, I held a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) roundtable at Community Housing of Wyandotte County (CHWC) and toured Juniper Gardens to learn more about public housing in Kansas City, KS.

As a new member of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Subcommittee on Appropriations, I appreciated the chance to listen and learn from local governments and nonprofit organizations that administer HUD programs here in the Third District and discuss the impact they have in our communities.

Thank you to Donny Smith at CHWC for hosting the discussion.

Judging High School Debate Tournament

I had the privilege on Friday to judge a Congressional Debate at Shawnee Mission North's Invitational Debate tournament. These students, from many high schools, came well prepared and amazed me with their articulate arguments for and against a variety of issues including some before Congress today.

Thank you to Shawnee Mission North Principal Dick Kramer for his leadership and to Meagan Deutch, SMN Forensics and Debate coach, for this special invitation.
Credit Union Roundtable

On Friday, I held a credit union roundtable discussion at Main Street Credit Union in Mission. We discussed the work we are doing in the new Congress to facilitate an environment that will foster job growth and the challenges credit unions are facing with the mounting regulations coming out of Washington.

Thank you to Kansas Credit Union Association and Federal Home Loan Bank Topeka for facilitating the meeting and discussion.

Letter to Congressional Leadership Regarding Budget Reconciliation Process to Repeal Obamacare

I have joined a number of my colleagues in cosigning Congressman John Fleming's letter to Speaker John Boehner urging him to utilize the budget reconciliation tool to repeal the Affordable Care Act. This is the same process that allowed Democrats to pass the bill in 2010, and should not be taken off the table as a method for repeal. Below is a copy of the letter.

Kansas City Kansas Congressional Forum

I enjoyed spending time in downtown Kansas City, Kansas on Friday at Congressional Forum, put on by the KCK Chamber of Commerce. They've been meeting monthly for 46 years and have never missed a meeting. I spoke about how the GOP Majority has been shaping the new Congress by bringing a higher level of productivity and bipartisanship by allowing debate on legislation and consideration of Democrat amendments in the Senate. In fact, new Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already allowed consideration of more amendments in one month than all of last year under Democratic leadership.

I also spoke about passing the Keystone authorization bill, working with the Administration on trade issues, and my recently-introduced Email Privacy Act that will bring our digital privacy laws into the 21st Century.

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