Washington Update

Legislation

Congressman Womack previously standing outside of the U.S. Capitol stairs

Desperation. That is what describes the legislative maneuvers Democrats took on the floor this week. On Wednesday, in an absurd move, they air-dropped over 700 pages of election-related measures into legislation that has nothing to do with the right to vote. Why the avoidance of proper legislative procedure? Because tacking these measures onto H.R. 5746 would allow them to avoid the filibuster as they seek to centralize election control in the hands of the federal government and unelected bureaucrats. The measures of their proposals are so radical that they know they won’t pass the normal vote threshold in the Senate. So, they snuck them into a wholly unrelated NASA bill. The majority has learned that if you can’t win on your merits, then change the rules of the game. No real hearings. No debate. No standalone bill. That’s what you need to know about legislation set to bankroll the political campaigns of Speaker Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, eliminate fraud prevention statutes, and disregard state laws in Arkansas and across the country. Unsurprising coming from a party actively moving to grant foreign nationals the ability to vote in U.S. elections. The only things being suppressed are the bedrock principles of our constitutional republic.

I vehemently opposed this legislation, which would:

• Give BILLIONS of public dollars to campaigns. Speaker Pelosi could receive up to $22.7 MILLION in public dollars for her reelection campaign, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer could receive up to $44.1 for his reelection campaign.
• Transform the office of the U.S. Attorney General into an unelected, unaccountable "Elections Czar" with the power to change state elections laws and circumvent state constitutional processes.
• Force states to legalize ballot harvesting.
• Make it harder for states to maintain their voter lists.
• Disregard state voter identification laws and provisional ballot rules.
• Impose liberal California voting methods on every state.
• Allow the IRS to investigate and consider the political and policy persuasions of organizations before granting tax-exempt status.

As I have said before, the ability to vote is one of the most sacred rights we have as citizens of our great republic. It’s a privilege to be protected. Attempts to centralize election control in the hands of the federal government and unelected bureaucrats will do everything but that. The Constitution is clear—these rights are reserved to the states.

The floor of the U.S. House of Representatives

I also joined House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Michael McCaul (TX-10) and other House Republicans in urging Secretary of State Antony Blinken to pull out of the fruitless Vienna talks to re-enter the JCPOA, a.k.a the failed Obama-era Iran Nuclear Deal. Iran’s growing nuclear provocations, while stalling progress in negotiations, are the epitome of bad faith. The United States and our partners must increase pressure on Iran to stop its dangerous nuclear advancements. The most effective way to do so is to strongly enforce our existing sanctions and urge our partners to take similar steps. If Iran is not prepared to negotiate as things stand, we need to build our leverage to compel them to negotiate a better, stricter deal with no sunsets. Read more here.

Across the chamber, I was also taking note of action related to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. As you know, I have been a staunch opponent of this Putin-led pipeline and consistently taken legislative action to stop its development. The sanctions that I have supported to stop the pipeline were up for a vote in the Senate. It’s an issue that typically enjoys bipartisan support because common sense denotes that we don’t want to give Russia an opportunity to exert more power in the region.

Yet, I was shocked to hear President Biden actively lobbying Congress for Vladimir Putin’s preferred outcome. Taking cues from the Administration, many Senate Democrats—in a major about-face on the issue—granted Moscow its wish of a "weapon" of power. You read that correctly. They did NOT support sanctions against the pipeline. In fact, in the same week they called to abolish the filibuster—they used the maneuver to protect Putin’s interests. The hypocrisy is actually unbelievable. These actions would be expected from agents of the Kremlin—not American lawmakers. Nord Stream 2 is not just a pipeline, it’s a coercive instrument that will undermine our European allies and global energy security. Granting Russia greater leverage as they amass troops on the Ukrainian border is the epitome of weakness and appeasement. The only interests protected by my colleagues on the other side of the aisle—were those of a U.S. adversary. More information here.

SCOTUS Decision

The Supreme Court of the United States

I’m sure you saw the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruling against the Biden Administration’s sweeping and unconstitutional federal government vaccine mandate on private business. SCOTUS reiterated what I said from the start: President Biden’s attempted vaccine mandate on businesses is a complete overreach and unconstitutional. The federal government has no right to dictate the medical decisions of private employers. This is a win for freedom and the American people.

Inflation

The rise of inflation shows Bidenomics is not working 

Inflation is taxation, and it is soaring under President Biden. The “Biden Boom” includes the Consumer Price Index surging 7 percent, marking the highest pace of inflation in 40 years. This is the largest annual increase since 1982. What is worse is 2021 went down as the worst year for inflation since 1981.

The American people don’t need to see statistics or read news headlines to know the reality. They have felt the impact of inflation each day. Greeted by bare shelves, emptier wallets, wiped out wage gains, and rising costs—we are all paying the price of the Democrats’ government spending binge. Here's just one real-life Third District example of supply chain and inflation impact on a local business: depleted grocery store stock means Neal’s Cafe can't currently find heavy whipping cream. When the supply chain affects the apple salad for the weekend—you know Bidenomics isn't working. Furthermore, nothing says abandon your economic agenda more than your presidency securing an increase in inflation every month of your administration.

Meetings and Hearings

Congressman Womack speaks during Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing

I spoke with Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Rahul Gupta. Substance abuse knows no boundaries. There is no state, community, or family—including my own—that hasn’t been touched by the scourge of addiction. And it’s a scary statistic to face when the leading cause of death for Americans between 18 and 45 is fentanyl overdoses. This reality is not only heartbreaking, but it is also preventable. We have to shine a greater light on educating the vulnerable, supporting those struggling, and saving innocent lives.

As the Ranking Member of the FSGG Subcommittee, the funding of many anti-drug programs is in my purview. It’s my priority to ensure Congress is properly resourcing these initiatives and yielding meaningful results. I appreciated talking to Dr. Gupta about our commitment to initiatives that support the fight against addiction, as well as stopping the flow of drugs into the U.S.

Congressman Womack with Anthony Meyer and Doug Babb

I then joined a House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing focused on the impacts of continuing resolutions on the Department of Defense. Simply put, it’s bad for all involved. The courageous men and women who put their lives on the line for our country deserve our unyielding support. When Congress fails to provide stable funding, we hinder our warfighters and neglect our constitutional duty of providing for the common defense. It’s a clear reflection of the broken budget and appropriations process that has plagued this chamber for far too long. We can’t continue to hold our military hostage – and anything less than sustained, predictable appropriations will damage national security. We must do better by America’s service members. Watch the hearing here.

I also sat down with Anthony Meyer and Doug Babb of the U.S. Marshals Museum to talk about the institution, exhibits, funding, and more. I wrapped up my time in Washington with a meeting with Yessenia Gonzalez, a student at the University of Arkansas who is part of the Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program. She is very passionate about STEM and engineering, and it was great to hear from her. It was also her first time in D.C.!  

Congressional App Challenge

Rep. Womack honors Congressional App Challenge Winner Veera Unnam

It was my privilege to honor the winner of the 2021 Congressional App Challenge! This annual and nationwide coding competition for middle school and high school students aims to encourage our nation’s youth to pursue Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education and computer science careers. It’s a great way to allow students to think big, get creative, and use computer science skills to develop solutions to some of our nation’s challenges.

We received many thoughtful entries from hardworking students across AR-3, and I am pleased to announce that the 2021 winner is Veera Sai Joshik Unnam, an 8^th grader at Haas Hall Academy in Bentonville. If the name sounds familiar, it is. Veera is a back-to-back champion, as he also won the 2020 competition.

I was able to congratulate Veera on successfully defending his title today. Applying innovation and determination, he focused his coding skills on a new endeavor. His latest app—entitled AttendGo—equips teachers and schools with a novel tool for automated classroom attendance using state-of-the-art facial recognition. I’m constantly impressed by the enthusiasm for STEM exhibited by Third District entrants. The promise exhibited by our next generation shows the future is bright.

You can watch a tutorial of the winning app here. Additionally, learn more about today’s ceremony and 2^nd and 3^rd place winners here. The 2022 edition of the competition will open up later this year.

Wishing you a great weekend! You can keep an eye on my website or check out my Twitter and Instagram pages to stay up-to-date with the latest news from my office. Furthermore, find Arkansas vaccine locations here. I received my booster shot and hope you will do the same if you are eligible. As always, I encourage everyone to get fully vaccinated against COVID-19, but it should be a personal choice, not a federal government mandate.