Columns
This week, we said goodbye to former President George H. W. Bush after his death at age 94 at his home in Houston. At the time of his wife's death in April of this year, he and former First Lady Barbara Bush had been married for 73 years, which is the longest presidential marriage in history. President Bush will be remembered for many things, chief among them his governing during the collapse of the Soviet Union and his leadership during the Gulf War.
On Friday, President Trump, along with Mexican President Peña Nieto and Canadian Prime Minster Trudeau, signed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) at the G20 Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The USMCA is the culmination of more than a year of negotiations between our three countries in order to update and build upon the success of NAFTA. I look forward to playing an active role in the review process as a member of the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over trade agreements.
Each November, we celebrate National Family Week to reflect on the importance of strong families in our communities. Whether through biological child birth, adoption, or foster care, children need families to provide the care and support necessary to become healthy and productive adults. It has been a cornerstone of my tenure in office to support federal policies which encourage the development of strong families.
Thanksgiving is the time of year we come together with family and give thanks for our many blessings. This year I'm most thankful for our one-year-old son, Zeke, my wife, Andrea, and our endlessly loving family members who support us at every turn. I'm also thankful for renewed economic growth which increases opportunity for future generations of Americans.
Veterans Day, which was originally known as Armistice Day, marks the anniversary of the end of World War I, which ended at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. 2018 represents its 100-year anniversary. In 1954, Congress expanded the holiday to honor not only the sacrifices of those who fought in World War I, but all of our veterans, and renamed it Veterans Day.
We've all been there. Our families sit down for a nice, relaxing dinner and just as we begin to eat, the phone rings. But who could it be? It's fairly late in the evening and mostly anyone who would call at such an hour is already gathered together.
As I travel the Third District and visit our schools, I never cease to be amazed at the intelligence and drive of our students. Their informed curiosity over key issues facing our country has left a particularly strong impression on me this summer and it is this curiosity I seek to nurture through my outreach efforts.
During Medicare open enrollment, current and prospective beneficiaries are able to update or initiate Part D coverage as needed. This year's open enrollment will take place from October 15th to December 7th, allowing seniors to make decisions regarding their 2019 Medicare coverage.
On October 5th, President Trump signed into law the 2018 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act to update and authorize its activities for another five years. This is important to Nebraska's Third District because it contained a policy change whose specific aim is to support and revive commercial air service to our rural communities.
As your representative, I have fought to reduce burdensome and unnecessary government regulations which disincentivize entrepreneurship and strangle economic growth. In fact, regulatory issues were such a concern under the Obama administration, I consolidated my efforts under a program entitled Regulation Rewind. While the economic crisis of 2008 was a terrible event which none of us would hope to see repeated, the response under President Obama’s administration was to enact the most sweeping financial regulatory package of all time.