Dear Neighbor:

I wanted to take a moment to share an update about how my staff and I have been working for the people of Maryland’s Eighth District. It remains a surpassing and singular honor to serve as your Representative in Congress. 

As always, I encourage all of my constituents across the Eighth District to connect with me on Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram and Threads. If you need help with a federal agency and want to request my assistance, please complete the online request form here, and my District Office will be in touch.

All Best,

Jamie Raskin

Rep. Raskin’s November in Photos

Leading Democrats on the House Oversight Committee 

It continues to be a great honor and responsibility to lead the Democrats on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability as our Ranking Member. This past month on the Oversight Committee, we: 

• Convened a roundtable with school leaders, policy advocates, and legal experts to examine the escalating crisis of gun violence in America and devastating impact on communities and youth, and to put forth practical solutions to tackle this epidemic.
• Pressed for the investigation of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for his alleged failures to disclose gifts from associates with business before the Court and more.

Advancing Commonsense Solutions to Gun Violence 

Discussing gun violence prevention amendments to a Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies appropriations bill

As communities from Baltimore, Maryland to Lewiston, Maine reel from horrific gun violence, I offered amendments to an appropriations bill to stop bad apple firearms dealers from getting federal contracts and advocated for their inclusion in the bill. The statistics are appalling: over 90 percent of guns used to commit crimes can be traced to just 5 percent of firearms dealers. Gun violence is ripping apart our social contract and these amendments are just one strategy of many that I am pursuing alongside like-minded Members of Congress to protect our children and our communities.

Promoting Veteran Resources for Veterans Day 

Learning about the benefits available to our veterans at a local resource fair hosted by American Legion Post 41

Veterans Day is an important opportunity to recognize our outstanding veterans for their courageous service to our country. To mark Veterans Day this year, I had the great honor of sitting down with an impressive Eighth District Local Hero, Mike Heimall.

Mike is the Medical Director of the Washington, D.C. VA Medical Center, who discussed the exciting efforts that he is leading with our flagship VA facility to help veterans access resources, including for veterans experiencing homelessness who need stable housing. Mike and I also highlighted the exciting, newly expanded health benefits secured in the PACT Act last year.

Later in November, I was delighted to visit with veterans and their families at the VA Benefits Fair hosted by American Legion Post 41 in downtown Silver Spring (pictured above). If you are a veteran in Maryland’s beautiful Eighth District, I want to say a heartfelt thank-you for your service.

Recognizing Young Adults Living with Chronic Conditions

Due to extraordinary advancements in medicine, many young people who have serious conditions such as cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease, cancer, cerebral palsy, diabetes or complex congenital heart disease are now living into adulthood. However, for young adults living with these and other chronic health conditions, finding high-quality and affordable health care can be a serious challenge, and the transition from pediatric to adult systems of care can be especially difficult. In November, I honored Dr. Santi Bhagat, founder and president of Physician-Parent Caregivers, as a Local Hero for her work to close this health care gap. I also introduced a resolution recognizing the experiences of young adults living with chronic conditions. I will keep working to highlight the challenges these tenacious and resilient young Americans face as we continue our work to build a health care system that can better serve this growing population.

Honoring the Local Heroes of the Eighth District

My Thanksgiving Local Hero, Wendy Kent, helps MoCo nonprofit Tommy’s Pantry serve hundreds of local families in need with food and essentials throughout the year. Her leadership is an inspiring demonstration of our community’s solidarity and generosity this giving season.

Local Hero Colonel Jeremy Edwards, on top of helping me select extraordinary young students to nominate for our nation’s Military Service Academies, recently served as the Walter Reed Army Medical Center’s Medical Director and helmed the hospital’s COVID-19 response. I’m so grateful to this MD-08 Local Hero for his service to our country and our community.

Sharing My Statements and Legislative Actions on the Crisis in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza 

I’m speaking out against surging antisemitism, Islamophobia, and anti-Arab hate both at home and abroad. I’m sending strength and love to the three Palestinian American students shot in Vermont over Thanksgiving weekend in a disgraceful act of bigoted violence.

I released a statement on the Israel-Hamas War calling for the immediate release of all hostages captured by Hamas, an end to the violence, and a forward-looking strategy to ensure peace and security for all people in the region. You can find my most up-to-date writings and actions on the Israel-Hamas war on my website.

Monitoring developments in the region, Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts and I led a group of 25 of our colleagues to write to President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken emphasizing the urgent and ongoing need to protect children caught in the crossfire. We urged the Administration to continue prioritizing the safety of children and babies as the United States continues to press for the release of hostages and humanitarian aid for civilians.

I’m concerned that extremist settler violence in the West Bank is threatening Palestinian lives and communities and jeopardizing the possibility of a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians in the future. In November, I joined my colleagues Representatives Swalwell of California and Wild of Pennsylvania in urging the Biden Administration to address escalating settler violence and restore safety and security to the West Bank.

Acts of violence, vandalism, incidents on college campuses and the proliferation of propaganda online are at deep odds with our shared values. Last month, my colleague Rep. Dan Goldman and I wrote X (formerly Twitter) leadership demanding the platform take seriously the mis- and disinformation and propaganda flourishing on their platform. It’s clear we need a rededicated societal response to counter antisemitism, which is the gateway to destruction of liberal democracy. Last month, I joined a bipartisan letter to top Congressional appropriators urging Congress to allocate the funding needed to implement the first-of-its-kind Biden-Harris U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, and I just led a resolution calling for bipartisan collaboration and a comprehensive response to combat antisemitism in the United States, including by providing robust funding for the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights to help enforce Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and fully supporting the National Strategy.

Defending Democracy Against Insurrection

After bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate voted to impeach and convict Donald Trump for allegedly inciting the January 6 insurrection and the bipartisan January 6th Select Committee further demonstrated that Trump's rhetoric incited an insurrection on January 6, citizens across the country began challenging Trump’s eligibility to appear on the ballot in 2024 due to his alleged violation of Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. The text of the Fourteenth Amendment reads, “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office... who...shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.” I have been advocating for a strong originalist understanding of this language.

In November, in a case brought by six Republican and unaffiliated Colorado voters, Colorado District Court Judge Sarah Wallace wrote in her ruling that Donald Trump “engaged in insurrection” but ruled that he should remain on the ballot. The voters filed an appeal with the Colorado Supreme Court. Check out my conversation with CNN’s Jake Tapper about the decision and its implications for our democracy here.

After the Colorado Supreme Court overturned Judge Wallace’s ruling and disqualified Donald Trump from appearing on the 2024 ballot in Colorado, I joined MSNBC’s Alex Wagner to discuss the case.

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