Columns

This summer, I have been grateful for the opportunity to welcome Third District students visiting Washington to the U.S. Capitol Building. Its iconic architecture stands as an enduring reminder of American freedom and opportunity. In light of the blessings secured by our Constitution, fostering appreciation in young people for our unique system of government is essential.

Severe inflation, stock market turbulence, and troubling workforce data have driven recent economic concerns for American families already struggling to make ends meet. Moreover, our national debt has swelled to surpass $35 trillion—$12.74 trillion higher than the total national debt before the pandemic. Over the past year alone, the debt has grown by $6.73 billion per day.

This week, the White House announced a radical set of policy proposals to remake the Supreme Court of the United States. The proposals include reducing the length of time Supreme Court justices serve to 18-year terms and stripping former presidents of their immunity from prosecution for their actions in office. The latter is in plain opposition to a recent Supreme Court decision and would require passage of a constitutional amendment.

As the Israel-Hamas War continues, 111 of the 251 hostages taken by Hamas terrorists in the October 7th attacks remain in Gaza. This week, in southern Gaza, Israeli forces recovered five bodies of hostages killed by their Hamas captors. Of the American citizens taken hostage, eight have yet to be recovered, and, tragically, three of these are known to have lost their lives. It remains uncertain how many other hostages are still alive.

The attempted assassination of President Trump at a campaign rally held north of Pittsburgh last weekend has shocked the nation. Thankfully and miraculously, this heinous act of violence failed to take the former president’s life. To the relief of millions of Americans across the country, Trump was escorted away from the event with no life-threatening injuries.

Securing our country’s borders and safeguarding the American people are fundamental responsibilities of the federal government. Ongoing human trafficking at the border is a humanitarian crisis, and the smuggling of fentanyl and other illicit substances poses a serious risk to Americans.

On July 4, 1851, the 75^th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the federal government embarked on a project to add two major wings to the U.S. Capitol Building and enlarge its dome. In the ensuing decade, through Congress’ most contentious years then the first three years of the Civil War, construction carried on. In December 1863, the Statue of Freedom was installed on the now completed dome, signifying confidence the Union would be preserved at a fateful moment in American history.

The annual process to approve federal government spending requires Congress to pass and the president to sign 12 bills into law before the start of each fiscal year. Legislative consideration of these spending bills begins in the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, and, ideally, each bill moves through the legislative process individually until all 12 are enacted prior to September 30, the end of the federal fiscal year.