The past two weeks have been hectic in the district and Washington, D.C. Thankfully, Eastern North Carolina is beautiful and relaxing. At home, I enjoyed connecting with constituents, stakeholders, and community leaders. The best part of my job is listening to your thoughts and concerns to ensure your voices are heard in our nation’s capital.
In Washington, we passed critical legislation, including funding for the Departments of Interior Environment and related agencies, the establishment of a task force to investigate the assassination attempt on President Donald Trump, and a resolution condemning Border Czar Kamala Harris' handling of the border crisis.
This past week, we had the honor of hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for an address to a joint meeting of Congress. His powerful speech reinforced our commitment to support our ally in its just fight against radical, Islamic terrorists, including Hamas. Israel has every right to defend itself, and we must boldly stand with them in their efforts.
I will continue fighting for the values of North Carolina's Third Congressional District. If you wish to stay more engaged and aware of what is happening in Washington and our District please follow me on my socials linked above or here: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
Statement on President Biden No Longer Seeking Presidency
It is altogether fitting for President Biden’s decision to end his campaign for reelection. America is not about one person, but We the People. Our country stands at a pivotal moment in its history which requires our leaders to be capable of governing under immense pressure. It is tragic it took a disastrous debate performance for the President to be pushed into to his decision. The Democratic machine, and its allies in the media, having been lying to the American people for as long as they could about Biden’s mental acuity, with only political pressure from donors forcing them to admit their deceit.
Our country has suffered immensely under the Biden-Harris Administration. Their record is defined by historic and painful inflation, record energy costs, a border invasion of epic proportions and political weakness on the international stage. Such blunders have led to hardships on the lower and middle classes, the allowance of individuals into this country who wish to do us harm and global instability that has emboldened our enemies. With President Biden now endorsing Kamala Harris, he is endorsing a woman who cannot keep executive staff members and who failed in her only job. She oversaw, as the “Border Czar,” the greatest invasion our nation has ever seen. Because of both of these individuals, we, as a nation, are less secure at home, financially and physically, as we have ever been.
Key Votes
Interior and Environment Appropriations
As the world becomes increasingly hostile, we must prioritize being energy independent and reduce our reliance on foreign nations. Further, we must ensure the US government has sufficient dredging capacity to keep our waterways open.
We must take advantage of the incredible and vast resources under our feet across the United States. Oil and critical mineral production are vital to our national security and the economic prosperity of the nation. Instead of shutting down production and increasing our imports from China and other hostile nations, we should responsibly expand it!
North Carolina's 3rd District Wins
- Directs the National Park Service (NPS) to provide a briefing on the status of existing leaseholders with the NPS, particularly in financially struggling coastal regions, and the authorities for issuing and extending lease terms.
- $49 million for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service North American Wetlands Conservation Fund.
- $3.12 billion for the National Park Service, including $2.71 billion for the Operation of the National Park System account.
Water Resources Development Act
I am proud to have supported the Water Resources Development Act, bipartisan legislation critical to our coastal communities. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plays a vital role in Eastern North Carolina, ensuring our waterways remain open and accessible for business, recreation and defense purposes. I thank Chairman Sam Graves and, my friend, Congressman David Rouzer for authorizing research into flood mitigation and resiliency and expediting several feasibility study projects important to the region.
Eastern North Carolina Wins
- Amendment to the Army Civil Works Mission to allow UNCW to conduct academic research on flood mitigation, coastal resiliency, water resource ecology, water quality, aquatic ecosystem restoration (including aquaculture), coastal restoration, and resource-related emergency management in North Carolina and Mid-Atlantic region.
- Project for flood risk management, Tar Pamlico River Basin, North Carolina, initially authorized in 2000.
- Project for flood risk management of the Cape Fear River and tributaries.
- Project for coastal storm risk management in Surf City.
$50 million in total for North Carolina projects
Resolution Condemning Border Czar Kamala Harris
Vice President Kamala Harris was tapped to manage the southern border at the beginning of the Biden-Harris Administration. Immediately upon assuming this responsibility, our historic Border Crisis was triggered. Harris inherited a secure border from the Trump Administration but capitulated to those in her party who demand open borders and lax law enforcement for illegal immigrants. Her willful negligence has been devastating for our country.
Criminal illegals have taken innocent lives across America, fentanyl is pouring in and over 100,000 individuals now die from drug overdoses each year. Moreover, our legal immigration process has been defiled and the sovereignty of our nation has been eroded. The invasion of our southern border is composed of individuals from all over the world, including Chinese nationals whose encounters have increased by over 8,000 percent since Harris became the Border Czar. Vice President Kamala Harris owns this crisis; her complete failure and dereliction of duty is simply unbecoming of the office she holds.
Trump Assassination Task Force Investigation
On July 13th, the world watched in horror as former President Donald Trump narrowly survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The bullet that pierced President Trump's right ear was an inch from taking his life. News reports have indicated a significant failure by the United States Secret Service in its preparation and execution of security measures for the rally.
The American people are demanding answers on how this appalling incident occurred and accountability for those responsible. The task force must be a serious and sober examination of what transpired and work to assure future incidents will not happen again. I am grateful for Speaker Johnson's leadership and swift action to investigate this tragedy and ensure the safety of the President of the United States moving forward.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Address to Congress
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed Congress following the horrific attacks on October 7th and the alarming rise in antisemitic violence across college campuses in the United States.
I am appalled by the wavering leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration and Democrats in Congress. I extend my gratitude to the Prime Minister for his visit and his powerful message, shedding light on the despicable and hostile environment the Jewish people are enduring.
The United States is at a pivotal moment and must stand firm in our support for Israel in its righteous fight to protect itself against radical, Islamic terrorists.
Discussing Biotechnology with Ginkgo Biosecurity
It was a pleasure to speak with Ginkgo Biosecurity on its efforts to develop infrastructure capable of detecting biological threats and identifying signs of genetic engineering. With the rising concerns from both state and non-state actors, its work is more critical than ever.
If we've learned anything from COVID-19, biosecurity is national security. We must learn from the past so we can prevent catastrophic pandemics in the future.
I deeply appreciate its proactive diligence in prioritizing the health and safety of all Americans.
Ways and Means Subcommittee Hearing on Antisemitism
We have seen firsthand the result of the indoctrination of antisemitism across college campuses in our nation, but now we're discovering it's prevalent among kindergartens.
Teaching our youth to praise Iran-backed terrorist groups whose sole mission is to completely wipe out the Jewish community is despicable, intolerable and must be stopped.
The Ways and Means Committee will focus on these 501(c)(3) who have flooded money into our institutions to indoctrinate and invoke hate among our youth.
American Flood Coalition Seminar on Public Engagement
Thank you to the American Flood Coalition for hosting me to discuss my annual WATERS Summit and the work I'm doing to address waterway challenges and mitigate the impact of floods.
As the representative of nearly 80% of NC's coastline, I understand just how important these issues are. Everyone in Eastern North Carolina is impacted to some degree, from constituent homes and businesses to major military installations.
Flooding is a catalyst for solutions-oriented, common-sense engagement. Waterway challenges have no political affiliation - they are human issues. I’m proud to spearhead them in Congress!
