Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Salud Carbajal (CA-24)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24) joined a bicameral letter led by U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) to demand President Trump and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum immediately cease any plans to open new offshore oil and gas leases in U.S. federal waters off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, in the Arctic Ocean and northern Bering Sea off of Alaska, and in the Eastern Gulf. The lawmakers warned that opening these untouched coastlines to new offshore drilling would devastate coastal economies, jeopardize our national security, ravage coastal ecosystems, and put millions of Americans’ health and safety at risk, hurting people across the political spectrum.

Oil spills not only cause irreparable environmental damage, but also suppress the value of coastal homes, harm tourism economies, and weaken coastal infrastructure. Already, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forced to respond to over 150 oil and chemical spills each year. One disastrous spill can cost taxpayers billions in lost revenue, cleanup costs, and ecosystem restoration.

These threats of expanded oil drilling come as the Administration has already dismantled NOAA’s oil spill prevention and response programs, as almost 30 percent of the team in charge of addressing oil spills has been laid off or taken early retirement. The Emergency Response Division team and the oil spill program are slated to lose half their funding from the Administration’s proposed FY 2026 budget.

“This is a matter of national consequence for coastal communities across the country, regardless of political affiliation. It puts our economies, national security, and our most vulnerable ecosystems at severe risk,” wrote the lawmakers. “… Expanded oil and gas leasing poses risks to the health and livelihoods of our constituents, jeopardizes our tourism, fishing, and recreation economies, and threatens the marine life that inhabits our coastlines.”

“The United States already leads the world in oil and gas production. The industry currently holds more than 2,000 offshore leases covering over 12 million acres of federal waters —yet fewer than 500 of those leases are actively producing oil and gas,” continued the lawmakers. “There is no justification for opening vast swaths of our oceans to leasing when existing leases remain largely unused, while imposing mounting environmental and economic costs on coastal communities.”

Additionally, the Department of Defense (DOD) previously warned that oil and gas leases in portions of the Eastern Gulf would impact areas critical to our military readiness, including for military training and testing opportunities and assets. DOD has also signaled that parts of the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Planning Areas are “not compatible with oil and gas activities and infrastructure.”

The lawmakers condemned the potential expansion of offshore drilling while the Administration simultaneously curtails offshore wind and clean energy development. This year, the Trump Administration has withdrawn all outer continental offshore wind leases, rescinded all designated Wind Energy Areas, and eliminated $679 million in offshore-wind-related port infrastructure funding, including over $426 million for Humboldt Bay offshore wind infrastructure.

Specifically, the lawmakers demanded that President Trump and Secretary Burgum:

• Halt any steps toward new offshore oil and gas leasing in the Atlantic, Pacific, off the coast the Arctic and Bering Sea coasts of Alaska, and the Eastern Gulf;
• Limit offshore drilling, consistent with previous statutory and agency protections;
• Prioritize coastal resilience, including expanded storm-surge and flood protection, restoration of wetlands and sand dunes, and early-warning systems, so that communities in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, New Jersey, Alaska, and beyond are better protected; and
• Restore a credible pathway for offshore wind and other clean-energy projects by rescinding the OCS wind-leasing withdrawal and rescinded WEAs, enabling science-based projects that support jobs and coastal economies.

“Our coastal communities, fishermen, small business owners, Tribal Nations, tourism operators, and families cannot be sacrificed in the name of short-term drilling booms,” concluded the lawmakers. “Opening new offshore lease areas while cancelling clean energy progress is potentially illegal, a failure of leadership, and a dereliction of the public trust.”

Full text of the letter is available here and below:

Dear Mr. President and Secretary Burgum:

We write to express our strongest opposition to any effort to open new offshore oil and gas leasing in federal waters off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, in the Arctic Ocean and northern Bering Sea off of Alaska, and in the Eastern Gulf. This is a matter of national consequence for coastal communities across the country, regardless of political affiliation. It puts our economies, national security, and our most vulnerable ecosystems at severe risk. These reported proposals would reverse long-standing protections that shield sensitive coastal waters from new drilling, including withdrawals under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, statutory moratoria, and agency restrictions.

Expanded oil and gas leasing poses risks to the health and livelihoods of our constituents, jeopardizes our tourism, fishing, and recreation economies, and threatens the marine life that inhabits our coastlines. Many of these communities are already reeling from compounded disasters: hurricanes, sea-level rise, storm surge, and the lingering legacy of oil-spill disasters. Since 1980, hurricanes alone have generated well over $1.5 trillion in damage in the United States. Expanding offshore leasing increases the likelihood that future storms, oil spills, or other disasters will impose even greater burdens on front-line coastal communities.

In addition to storms, the threat of oil spills remains real and costly. For example, the U.S. Coast Guard reported a spill of more than 30,000 gallons of “oily-watery mixture” off Louisiana’s coast earlier this year. Oil spill damage threatens not just the environment, but the value of coastal homes, the health of tourism economies, and the resilience of coastal infrastructure. A single catastrophic spill could cost taxpayers, states, and local communities tens of billions of dollars in cleanup costs, lost revenue, and degraded ecosystems. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) already responds to over 150 oil and chemical spills in U.S. waters every year. Under the administration’s proposed plan, every part of the United States’ coastline would be at risk of disaster.

These risks are magnified by the administration’s dismantling of NOAA and its oil spill prevention and response programs. Nearly 30 percent of NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration Emergency Response Division staff—the team that addresses oil spills—were already laid off or took early retirement as part of the administration’s ongoing reductions in force. The administration’s proposed fiscal year 2026 budget would cut in half funding for the oil spill program and the Emergency Response Division.

Under the administration’s reported plans, harmful seismic testing could take place across every coast. NOAA Fisheries recently concluded that oil and gas activities like seismic exploration in the Gulf of Mexico could drive the endangered Rice’s whale—of which only a few dozen individuals remain—to extinction. Seismic testing for oil and gas disrupts communication, navigation, and breeding among whales, fish, and other marine species, inflicting irreversible harm on ocean ecosystems.

The administration’s reported plans would also open up oil and gas leasing in areas the Department of Defense (DOD) has previously stated would be problematic for military readiness. Leaked documents report that the administration will conduct leasing in parts of the Eastern Gulf, which includes irreplaceable military training and testing opportunities and assets. The DOD has similarly labeled portions of the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Planning Areas “not compatible with oil and gas activities and infrastructure.”

The United States already leads the world in oil and gas production. The industry currently holds more than 2,000 offshore leases covering over 12 million acres of federal waters —yet fewer than 500 of those leases are actively producing oil and gas. There is no justification for opening vast swaths of our oceans to leasing when existing leases remain largely unused, while imposing mounting environmental and economic costs on coastal communities.

While the administration prepares to expand offshore drilling, it is simultaneously undermining offshore wind and clean energy development, thereby reducing our ability to expand energy supplies and build resilient coastal economies. On January 20, 2025, the President issued a memorandum withdrawing all areas of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) from offshore wind leasing, pending review. On July 30, 2025, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) rescinded all designated Wind Energy Areas (WEAs). The Department of the Interior has issued directives curbing so-called “preferential treatment” for wind and solar, and the U.S. Department of Transportation withdrew $679 million in offshore-wind-related port infrastructure funding. These actions raise electricity costs for families, make our coastlines less safe, and our communities more vulnerable.

We therefore urge your administration to take the following actions to reverse course immediately: 

1. Halt any steps toward new offshore oil and gas leasing in the Atlantic, Pacific, off the coast the Arctic and Bering Sea coasts of Alaska, and the Eastern Gulf;

2. Limit offshore drilling, consistent with previous statutory and agency protections; 

3. Prioritize coastal resilience, including expanded storm-surge and flood protection, restoration of wetlands and sand dunes, and early-warning systems, so that communities in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, New Jersey, Alaska, and beyond are better protected; and 

4. Restore a credible pathway for offshore wind and other clean-energy projects by rescinding the OCS wind-leasing withdrawal and rescinded WEAs, enabling science-based projects that support jobs and coastal economies.

Protecting our waters from offshore drilling is broadly supported by the American public. Nearly two-thirds of registered voters oppose new offshore drilling, and hundreds of municipalities along the Atlantic, Pacific, the eastern Gulf, and these regions of Alaska have passed formal resolutions against its expansion. These communities have made clear that safeguarding their coastal economies, fisheries, and way of life must take precedence over short-term fossil fuel interests. Our coastal communities, fishermen, small business owners, Tribal Nations, tourism operators, and families cannot be sacrificed in the name of short-term drilling booms. Opening new offshore lease areas while cancelling clean energy progress is potentially illegal, a failure of leadership, and a dereliction of the public trust.

We look forward to your prompt response detailing what specific steps the Administration will take to halt this course of action and recommit to safeguarding our nation’s shores, economy, and shared future. 

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Paul Tonko (Capital Region New York)

WASHINGTON, DC — Following recent sports betting scandals that have resulted from the explosion of legal sports betting across the nation, Congressman Paul D. Tonko (NY-20) sent letters to several major professional sports leagues demanding they support implementing federal gambling safety standards included in his SAFE Bet Act. The letters were sent to the commissioners of the NBA, WNBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, MSL, and NWSL.

“Claims of prioritizing integrity ring hollow when leagues have sold credibility to gambling operators, integrated betting content into broadcasts, normalized wagering for teenagers, glorified it in advertising, and then failed to prevent criminal conduct from taking hold within the sport,” the letters read.

The letters continue, “The stakes go far beyond the integrity of the sport; they encompass the very real human harm occurring across communities nationwide. The reliance on voluntary self-policing has failed. If the integrity of professional sports depends on federal law enforcement alone, the current system is already broken.

“The choice before you is now explicit. Either engage directly with Congress to establish mandatory federal guardrails that restore integrity and protect the public or stand in opposition and accept responsibility when the next scandal breaks and more families and lives are destroyed.”

Tonko’s Supporting Affordability and Fairness with Every Bet (SAFE Bet) Act, reintroduced earlier this year, would establish minimum federal standards to create a safer, less addictive product, protect consumers, and restore needed trust in the integrity of sports. Specifically the bill addresses:

• Marketing
  • No sportsbook marketing during live sporting events, and no programing designed to induce gambling with “bonus”, “no sweat,” “bonus bets,” or odds boosts
• Affordability
  • Prohibits operators from accepting more than 5 deposits from a customer in a 24-hour period
  • Requires operators to conduct ‘affordability checks’ on customers before accepting wagers and prohibits operators from accepting deposits via credit card
• Artificial Intelligence
  • Prohibits the use of AI to track player’s gambling habits and offer individualized promotions
  • Prohibits the use of AI to create gambling products, such as microbets
• The SAFE Bet Act would also: Ban prop bets on all college and amateur athletes; authorize SAMHSA to collect data on the impact of sports betting nationwide; require a Surgeon General’s report on the public health challenges to sports betting; and create a national self-exclusion list.

The full letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Robert Manfred can be read HERE.

The full letter to Major Soccer League Commissioner Donald Garber can be read HERE.

The full letter to National Basketball Association Commissioner Adam Silver can be read HERE.

The full letter to National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell can be read HERE.

The full letter to National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman can be read HERE.

The full letter to National Women’s Soccer League Commissioner Jessica Berman can be read HERE.

The full letter to Women’s National Basketball Association Commissioner Cathy Englebert can be read HERE.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Lois Frankel (FL-21)

Today, Representative Lois Frankel, joined by all Florida House Democrats, sent a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier urging them to join 26 states in a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s refusal to release $6 billion in contingency funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) during the ongoing government shutdown. The lawsuit also calls on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reimburse states that cover SNAP benefits with their own funds once the government reopens.

Without immediate action, the Trump Administration’s refusal to use these emergency funds could leave approximately 3 million Floridians, including 160,000 Palm Beach County residents, at immediate risk of going hungry when SNAP benefits run out on November 1. If Governor DeSantis and Attorney General Uthmeier do not join the lawsuit, Florida will be unable to access any of the funds awarded should the case prevail.

“The impact of a suspension of benefits would be immediate and severe, forcing Florida’s children, seniors, Veterans, and working families to turn to already-strained food banks and local charities for help,” the Members wrote. “Florida’s most vulnerable residents should not pay the price for the Trump Administration’s refusal to use funds Congress has already made available.”

“We urge you to put Florida’s interests first by joining Commonwealth of Massachusetts et al. v. U.S. Department of Agriculture et al. and demanding that USDA release the funds needed to keep food assistance flowing to those who depend on it.”

For full text of the letter, click here.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Joaquin Castro (20th District of Texas)

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)

Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries appeared on CNN’s The Source, where he emphasized that while Republicans remain on vacation, Democrats will continue fighting to find a bipartisan spending agreement to end the shutdown, protect the healthcare of the American people and restore the nutritional assistance that Republicans are ripping away.

KAITLAN COLLINS: My lead source tonight is one of those Democrats that the Speaker just mentioned, the House Minority Leader, Hakeem Jeffries of New York. And thank you, sir, for being here. What’s your response to Speaker Johnson saying that he has given up on Democratic leadership, i.e. you?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, Mike Johnson hasn’t even tried to sit down and negotiate with Democrats during the 29 days that Donald Trump and Republicans have actually shut the government down. And of course, they are completely and totally uninterested in solving or addressing decisively the Republican healthcare crisis that they’ve created, including their continued refusal to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, notwithstanding the fact that on November 1st, when open enrollment begins, it’s going to be crystal clear to tens of millions of Americans across the country that their premiums, co-pays and deductibles are about to dramatically increase.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Would you say that Zohran Mamdani has anything to do with reopening the government for Democrats?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Of course not. It’s a silly, unhinged conspiracy theory. The thing that we know to be true about Mike Johnson and House Republicans is that they haven’t been given permission by their puppet master, that would be Donald J. Trump, to sit down and have a conversation with Democrats. We’ve said from the very beginning that we want to reopen the government, that we want to enter into a bipartisan spending agreement that actually meets the needs of the American people, while, at the same time, addresses the healthcare crisis that they’ve created and are visiting on the American people, which includes, but is not limited to, the largest cut to Medicaid in American history. The fact that hospitals, nursing homes and community-based health centers are closing all across America, including dozens potentially in Louisiana, the home state of Mike Johnson. And now they’re refusing to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, which is going to adversely impact the ability of working-class Americans, everyday Americans and middle-class Americans to receive their healthcare or go see a doctor when they need to.

KAITLAN COLLINS: You’ve said that Mike Johnson’s not willing to sit down and have a conversation. Y’all did have a phone conversation, I believe you said earlier today. Who initiated that call? Was that you or was that Speaker Johnson?

LEADER JEFFRIES: It was a call from Mike Johnson. It was very brief. And it wasn’t a substantive discussion in terms of finding a path forward.

KAITLAN COLLINS: But was he calling to talk about the government shutdown?

LEADER JEFFRIES: I mean, you can say that that was in the ballpark, but, you know, it was a private conversation that will remain private. However, nothing meaningful came out of it, again, because Donald Trump has not given Mike Johnson permission to enter into a bipartisan negotiation. Kaitlan, I mean House Republicans have been literally on vacation for the last five weeks. They’ve canceled votes five consecutive weeks in a row. They are uninterested in doing anything other than jamming their partisan Republican spending bill down the throats of the American people. And as Democrats, we’ve made clear we will not support a partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the healthcare of the American people. Period, full stop.

KAITLAN COLLINS: I asked about y’all’s conversation because it sounds like based on the reporting here at CNN and other outlets that cover you closely on the Hill, that it’s a lot of the rank and file members who are trying to have these conversations on next steps here, whether that’s in the Senate or even in the House tonight. And some people might look at that and say, the leaders—should the leaders not be leading on these negotiations and these talks to find some kind of common ground?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, from the standpoint of what may emerge from the Senate, as House Democrats, we’ve consistently said that we will consider anything in good faith that emerges from the Senate as long as it’s, of course, bipartisan in nature and decisively addresses the Republican healthcare crisis. But we’re not going to, you know, continue to go down this road that Republicans have been taking the country since January 20th, which is my-way-or-the-highway because they just want to jam their right-wing ideology down the throat of the American people. We’ve seen the damage that they’ve already done in their One Big Ugly Bill, which, by the way, also includes the largest cut to SNAP in American history. They cut $186 billion in nutritional assistance. Literally, these people ripped food from the mouths of hungry children, seniors, veterans, women and families so they could reward their billionaire donors with massive tax breaks and make those tax breaks permanent. And now they’re threatening to take those benefits away from 42 million Americans on November 1st.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Well, can I ask you on that, because that’s what Leader Thune was shouting about on the floor today because a Democrat over in the Senate tried to introduce a bill basically that would just fund SNAP during the government shutdown. We’ve seen some Republicans who support doing that. And yes, you’re right, the Republicans just cut $186 million from SNAP in the One Big Beautiful Bill. We’ve talked about that at length with Republicans on this show. But I wonder, does that comfort the 42 million people, though, who are about to go without SNAP starting in November, who are being denied those benefits, while you’re fighting for these Obamacare subsidies? The question is, you know, which pain point, you know, is the worst, I guess.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, none of this pain that Republicans have inflicted on the American people is acceptable. It’s also important to note that the money currently exists within the Trump administration, including $5 billion in a contingency fund specifically for this kind of circumstance, to continue providing SNAP benefits to the American people, including 16 million children who might otherwise go hungry if Donald Trump successfully withholds these SNAP benefits. The Trump administration doesn’t need Congress to act in order to continue providing nutritional and food assistance to everyday Americans. They’re trying to weaponize this issue and cause people to go hungry in the most callous and cruel manner possible.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Yeah, but on that front, as you know, what basically they have in their contingency funds is about 5 to 6 billion dollars. It costs about $9 billion for SNAP benefits. So what happens if they do dip into that? I mean, that’s still not enough to cover all the benefits.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, there’s certainly other funding that they have the ability to move around, as we’ve seen them do throughout the entirety of Donald Trump’s presidency. And by the way, this is the same group of people who somehow found $40 billion in order to bail out their right-wing, wannabe dictator friend in Argentina. But they can’t find a dime in order to make sure that more than 42 million Americans, including more than a million veterans and eight million seniors, don’t go hungry because of their callousness? Of course they can find that funding. They are unwilling to because they want to weaponize hunger as part of their continuing effort to hurt the American people.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Leader Thune’s argument today was if Democrats want to fund SNAP, they’ve had 13 opportunities to do so by just funding the government. That would keep SNAP funded. For Democrats, is there a point, though, where the pain of the shutdown outweighs the fight for the extended Obamacare subsidies in your view?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, we’re going to continue to fight on all of the things. And we’ve said from the very beginning that we want to find a bipartisan path forward to enacting a spending agreement that actually meets the needs of the American people. And we set out three criteria—their health, public safety and their economic well-being, particularly as it relates to driving down the high cost of living in an environment where Donald Trump promised to lower costs on day one. Costs haven’t gone down in America. Costs have gone up. Inflation moving in the wrong direction. Trump tariffs creating thousands of dollars in additional expense on everyday Americans. Electricity bills through the roof. Housing costs out of control. Child care costs out of control. And now they want to create this healthcare crisis because of their refusal to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits. So we’re fighting on all of the things, but anchored in a premise that we have to make life better for working-class Americans, everyday Americans and middle-class Americans.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Yeah, it’s just obviously going to be really tough for those millions of people who rely on SNAP and are about to not get it. You said today that there are zero cracks when it comes to your group, to the Democratic side. I want you to listen, though, to what your colleague from New Jersey had to say.

RECORDING OF REP. GOTTHEIMER: I think what’s a very fair deal is open the government and let’s just vote on extending these premiums for a year or more. I don’t understand what’s so hard about that. And by the way, Senator Thune has offered that, I believe. He said we’ll—he offered up a vote that we can actually have a vote on extending these premium.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Obviously Josh Gottheimer is a Democrat. What’s your reaction to his argument there?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Yeah, well, I speak to Josh five or six times a week. And, you know, we all are in this fight to make sure that we protect the healthcare of everyday Americans. And of course, that includes but is not limited to dealing with extending the Affordable Care Act tax credits. These Republicans can’t necessarily be trusted by simply offering a wing and a prayer. Understand, this is the same group of people who have tried to repeal the Affordable Care Act more than 70 different times over the last 15 years. They have zero healthcare plan that is credible. Don’t take my word for it. That’s what Marjorie Taylor Greene has made clear. She can’t find their healthcare plan. None of us can because it’s non-existent. And so we just want to make sure on behalf of the American people that there’s a credible path toward addressing the Republican healthcare crisis.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Congresswoman AOC told me that she believes—that she needs to see ink on paper before she would vote to reopen the government. Is that your standard as well when it comes to those subsidies and what’s going to happen with them?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, I think we just need a credible path forward so that beyond—

KAITLAN COLLINS: Right, but what does a credible path forward look like? I think a lot of people want to know.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well a credible path forward to me means something legislative, and we’ve made that point from the very beginning. And we believe that it exists because there are Republicans—both traditional conservative Republicans who are in swing districts who are pleading with Mike Johnson to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits and then some people on the right like Marjorie Taylor Greene—who also recognizes that premiums, co-pays and deductibles absent congressional action are about to skyrocket for her constituents and people all across rural America, urban America, small town America, the heartland of America and, of course, Black and brown neighborhoods and communities throughout America, in some cases by a thousand or two thousand dollars per month. This is all unsustainable, and it’s why it requires dramatic, decisive action.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Before you were the House Minority Leader, there was a government shutdown back in 2013. It was Republicans who would not vote to fund the government at that time. I want to listen to something you had to say then.

RECORDING OF REP. JEFFRIES: We’re in the midst of a government shutdown right now that is unnecessarily forcing pain on the American people. It’s a shutdown that was manufactured by the House GOP that has resulted in a situation where Americans all across this country have now been put in jeopardy. That’s a tragedy of epic proportions.

KAITLAN COLLINS: I wonder what Hakeem Jeffries of today would say to the Hakeem Jeffries of 2013 who had that message in terms of wanting to pass a clean CR so Congress could get back to work.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, the Hakeem Jeffries of today definitively agrees with the Hakeem Jeffries of yesterday from the standpoint of, listen, we’ve said to Republicans, get to the negotiating table. We want to find a bipartisan path forward. We want to reopen the government. We are standing by hardworking federal employees, but we need a partner in that effort. But we don’t have a partner. Literally, Donald Trump over the last 29 days has spent more time talking to Hamas and to the Chinese Communist Party than to Democrats on Capitol Hill who represent half the country. And that’s extraordinary in and of itself. And we’ve said we will pass a spending bill that’s bipartisan, that makes life better for the American people. What we will not do is support continued Republican efforts to rip healthcare away from everyday Americans.

KAITLAN COLLINS: You were asked today if you will defer your paycheck during the shutdown. Obviously a lot of federal workers, TSA agents are going without paychecks. Have you made a decision on that yet, sir?

LEADER JEFFRIES: I’ll be commenting on that shortly, but I understand the sacrifice that people are making, including Capitol Police officers here, and I’m going to conduct myself accordingly given that sacrifice.

KAITLAN COLLINS: So that sounds like a yes, that you will defer your pay check?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, I’ll have more to say about that shortly, but I think consistent with the values that I just articulated.

KAITLAN COLLINS: Leader Hakeem Jeffries, thank you for joining us tonight. Really appreciate your time.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Thank you.

Full interview can be watched here.

###

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23)

“Trump’s presidency has been an unending nightmare for Venezuelan Americans here and around the country. He has ripped away temporary protected status from law-abiding Venezuelans and thrown countless families into terror through raids conducted by agents in masks. He has characterized all Venezuelans as criminal dirtbags and alien enemies. And he has killed at least 57 people, most of whom were Venezuelan, with airstrikes on boats, with no evidence, due process, or Congressional authorization,” said Wasserman Schultz. “Anyone who believes that Trump will promote democracy in Venezuela should look at what he’s done to democracy here.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Rick Larsen (2nd Congressional District Washington)

Larsen Releases Statement on Senate Vote on Canadian Tariffs

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA)

Griffith Statement on Protecting Ninth District Beef

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Diana DeGette (First District of Colorado)

DENVER, CO — Today, Congresswoman Diana DeGette (CO-01) released the following statement after the Colorado Division of Insurance announced that health care costs are going to double on average for Coloradans who get their health insurance through Connect for Health Colorado. 

“For months, Democrats have been sounding the alarm about the Republican-forced health care crisis. Now, inaction by Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress, who have been on vacation for over a month, will cause health care costs to double for many of my constituents and hundreds of thousands of Coloradans. Costs are already too high under Donald Trump, and many families will now be forced to choose between staying on their health care or buying groceries. 

“As the top Democrat on the Health Subcommittee, I am heading back to Washington because this is not acceptable. Republicans need to end their vacation and come back to the table with a real plan, not a concept, to fix their mess.” 

According to the Colorado Division of Insurance, hundreds of thousands of Coloradans enrolled in the state’s individual marketplace, Connect for Health Colorado, will see an average premium increase of 101%, meaning their premiums will double in cost. 

DeGette recently hosted a press conference with Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway and Connect for Health CEO Kevin Patterson to address this issue and call on Republicans to act. 

###

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (1st District of Washington)

Today, Representative Suzan DelBene (WA-01), House Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition and Foreign Agriculture Ranking Member Jahana Hayes (CT-05), House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Angie Craig (MN-02), and 212 House Democrats sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, urging the agency to use contingency reserve dollars to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) during the government shutdown. With no resolution to a bipartisan path forward to reopen the government, SNAP funding is set to lapse on November 1, putting 42 million children and families at risk of experiencing hunger, including 900,000 Washingtonians.

There is enough in the SNAP contingency reserve to cover nearly two-thirds of the amount needed for a full month of benefits. The Members also advocate for the agency to use statutory transfer authority or any other legal means to supplement shortfalls the contingency reserve cannot cover.

“Now more than ever, millions of families across the country depend upon the SNAP to make ends meet. For far too many veterans, seniors, and children, SNAP benefits are the difference between having food or not,” wrote the Members. “Now, due to the government shutdown, they are facing crippling levels of uncertainty about whether they will be able to afford food next month. A potential lapse in benefits would be felt by Americans of all ages and affect every corner and congressional district in the country.”

“We urge USDA to use these funds for November SNAP benefits and issue clear guidance to states on how to navigate benefit issuance. Additionally, while the contingency reserve will not cover November benefits in full, we urge USDA to use its statutory transfer authority or any other legal authority at its disposal to supplement these dollars and fully fund November benefits. There are clear steps the administration can and must take immediately to ensure that millions of families across the country can put food on their table in November. Choosing not to ensure SNAP benefits reach those in need this November would be a gross dereliction of your responsibilities to the American people,” the letter continues.

Full text of the letter is available here.