Though we will be sending our weekly e-newsletter on Monday, November 9, I hope you are interested in this special edition e-newsletter in the meantime.
Changing the House – Continued
Those who have followed my public statements for the last several years know I have been concerned about the rules in the House and in the Senate. The rules we have been working under are not… Read more »
Changing the House
Following the September 25 announcement that then-House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) would be resigning from Congress at the end of October, many discussions took place regarding future leadership in the House of Representatives. In recent weeks, I and others have been working together to attempt to craft proposed changes to House Republican Conference rules and… Read more »
Pipelines, Pipelines Everywhere
On October 22, my colleagues and I on the Subcommittee on Energy and Power held a hearing on the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan regulations for new and existing power plants. 4 out of 5 witnesses at this hearing said at some point that these are “cap-and-trade”-style regulations. Previously, Janet McCabe, Acting Assistant Administrator… Read more »
Rogue Iran
President Obama’s bad nuclear deal with Iran entered a new phase on Sunday, October 18, which supporters of the deal are calling “Adoption Day.” This day is marked 90 days after the deal was endorsed by the United Nations. While different from full implementation of the deal, as reported by CNN, this “…means that officials from Iran, the United States and other… Read more »
Stetson and Barter System
In 2009, President Obama’s idea of a cap and trade carbon dioxide (C02) emissions policy passed the House, but failed to pass the Senate. The legislation never became law, and Congress heard public opinion loud and clear in the next elections. In 2010, new members were elected in historic numbers, and many members who voted for the cap and trade… Read more »
The Great Game is Afoot
Many are familiar with the 1967 Walt Disney classic film The Jungle Book – the tale of a young orphan boy, Mowgli, raised by wolves but who must leave his wolf family and return to the “man village” as the result of the fearsome tiger Shere Khan. This animated film was inspired by a book by the same name, which was written by the popular writer Rudyard… Read more »
Pope and Change
We experienced an historic moment last week when Pope Francis addressed a joint meeting of Congress, the first Pope in our nation’s history to do so. I was in attendance to hear his remarks to the people of the United States.
Regardless of your religious beliefs or political leanings, Pope Francis’ words were thought-provoking. While others in the media have… Read more »
A Ban and an Energy Boom
Virtually no one would have predicted just a decade ago that the United States would soon transform into an energy-producing powerhouse. Regardless, we have, and our nation is now one of the world’s leading producers of oil and natural gas.
But there is action that can and should be taken in order to help sustain this success: lifting the outdated ban on… Read more »
Preventing a Nuclear Iran
Those who have read this column regularly are likely aware that, since November of 2012, I have been consistently calling for the U.S. Senate to abandon its current modern filibuster/cloture rule, which requires a super majority of Senators in order to take a vote on any issue. Under this practice, a single Senator acting anonymously can place a “hold” on… Read more »
Telemedicine Advances in the Ninth
Last week, I had the opportunity to visit a facility right here in the Ninth District that is making strides in health care innovation and improving patient care.
At the Radford Health and Rehab Center, some of the nurses will be wearing “smart glasses” as part of their wound care program. These glasses are equipped with a tiny camera, and will… Read more »
