Veterans Day
Saluting America’s Heroes
This morning, when each of us woke up, we won the lottery because we woke up in the greatest country on the face of the planet.
We have the unique fortune of living in a country where so many have selflessly fought and even laid down their lives for this idea of liberty that our Founding Fathers crafted centuries ago.
A nation of the people, by the people, and for the people. A nation of inalienable rights granted by our creator. A nation that gives us the opportunity to pursue life, liberty, and happiness—each of these secured by the sacrifices made by those willing to defend her.
No matter what capacity of service, Veterans Day is for everyone who has worn the uniform of an American servicemember. Each swore an oath, leaving loved ones behind, risking their lives for something bigger than themselves.
Men and women alike, all races and ethnicities, all religions and political persuasions, band together for one shared desire to serve our beloved country.
These are the true heroes of America.
Especially during times like these, we are reminded that freedom isn’t free. We look overseas at two nations fighting for the very thing we are privileged to cherish here in America.
Our friends in Israel—pursuing a mission to eradicate the evil Hamas terrorists who brutally murdered 1,400 of its innocent civilians.
Our friends in Ukraine—strongly responding to an unprovoked attack from Vladimir Putin’s war machine.
These wars display the pure, unfathomable evil that our brave men and women in uniform have historically fought and defeated—leading with courage and unwavering dedication to defending the land of the free.
Despite the deep divides we see festering throughout the nation, Veterans Day is a day where we can all come together as one—as all Americans, who give our greatest gratitude to those who’ve served.
They are why we’re able to worship as we choose, hold our government accountable to the people, and raise our families in such a beautiful land where we have boundless opportunities.
We get to experience the joy of being a free American—which is all made possible by the people we honor this special weekend.
My challenge to you: love your country. Honor those who defend her, pass these values down to future generations, and never miss an opportunity to thank a veteran.
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My friends Carder Ferguson and Chuck Adkins, who are both veterans of the Arkansas Army National Guard and live in Arkansas’ Third, were in Washington this week for Veterans Day events. These great men are also in the national leadership in the Military Order of the Purple Heart, and Mr. Ferguson was a non-commissioned officer under my command when we deployed to Sinai, Egypt in 2002. I had the honor of giving them a tour of the People’s House and catching up with these great American heroes.
I was honored in a very special way this morning by sharing part of my day with students, faculty and staff, and courageous veterans at the Don Tyson School of Innovation Veterans Day Assembly as the keynote speaker. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to begin Veterans Day weekend than to express my gratitude for our veterans in a room full of proud Arkansans.
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Couldn't pass up the chance to stop by my grandson Kaden's 5th grade class to talk about the importance of honoring our men and women in uniform. These bright young minds are our next generation of leaders. It's vital they learn how fortunate they are to live in the land of the free because of the brave--something that should never be taken for granted.
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The next chapter for these students is to attend one of America's service academies to join the world's greatest military. It's always inspiring to me to see young people with the maturity, integrity, and distinct commitment to protecting the nation.
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Appropriations update
The honeymoon is over. We’re back to an unproductive and frustrating stalemate in the House of Representatives.
If you remember, last week I said we plan to take up the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill, as well as my appropriations legislation, the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) bill.
The THUD bill contains six district-specific Community Project Funding projects, all of which I had requested for our community. Things like road improvements and water infrastructure needs, which would help make our region safer and expand our economy.
The FSGG bill is what I have spent the year carefully crafting as the chairman of the subcommittee. At a time of high inflation and soaring deficits, this bill is sorely needed, as it responsibly claws back the Biden Administration and Democrats’ bloated spending by demanding federal agencies concentrate on their core mission—serving the American public. It rescinds $10 billion of IRS funding preventing the creation of a super army of IRS agents, reins in heavy-handed financial regulations, and brings federal employees back to the office—amongst other important provisions aimed at supporting economic growth and protecting American investors and small businesses. You can hear me talk about it on the House floor here.
Well, both of these bills were debated all week and teed up for a floor vote, but ultimately pulled from consideration before we could vote on the measures. Two solid, conservative bills that would reverse course of the Biden Administration’s damaging agenda and give us negotiating power with the Democrat-controlled Senate were wasted.
In this week’s Comment from the Capitol, I give it to you straight, and tell you why the House is back at a hurtful halt. I’ll give you a hint—it has a lot to do with the same fringe members of my conference, yet again. Listen to it here.
I also took a minute to recognize the hard work of my team during my floor speech. Although we didn’t get the outcome we wanted, the work they have put into this process is truly remarkable, as is their dedication to solving the challenges America faces day in and day out. Listen here!
Censuring Rep. Tlaib
We did come to a bipartisan consensus, though, on one thing. That was censuring my colleague Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.
She has continuously and repeatedly made vile, inaccurate accusations against Israel. She has also failed to condemn Hamas’ murders of innocent Israelis and continues to call for an unreasonable ceasefire. I believe this sort of rhetoric is unbecoming of a Member of Congress, especially as we support Israel in its fight to eradicate terrorists from the world.
Let me be clear, Hamas started this war on October 7 when they launched a horrific attack and ruthlessly murdered 1,400 innocent Israelis. Israel has every right to defend its people and destroy these evil terrorists, and the United States Congress should stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their efforts.
Looking ahead
The government is set to run out of funding when the clock strikes midnight next Friday the 17th. Figuring out how to avert a detrimental government shutdown will be the goal of the week. Right now, we have no solid plan forward. I anticipate we will be scrambling until the last minute to pass another stopgap funding measure, but there’s a wide variety of ideas for a solution that have been thrown out there from my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and the Capitol. As always, I will be sure to keep you updated as we progress.
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