MIL USHOR-2b Engine

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Ron Estes (R-Kansas)

Estes Affirms National Deficit Decrease, Highlights Further Need for Fiscal Sanity in Government

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Scott Peters (52nd District of California)

What They Are Saying: SPEED and Reliability Act

Washington, DC – On September 25, 2025, Rep. Scott Peters (D-CA-50) and Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY-06) introduced the Streamlining Powerlines Essential to Electric Demand (SPEED) and Reliability Act.  

““Modernizing the nation’s electricity grid is critical to enabling the U.S. to continue leading in the 21st-century economy. Unfortunately, transmission and generation constraints across the country are restricting economic growth, including the development of the U.S. data center industry, which is seeking to continue investing hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S. annually to build America’s digital infrastructure. The SPEED and Reliability Act, co-sponsored by Representative Scott Peters (D-CA) and Representative Andy Barr (R-KY), provides a bipartisan framework to help alleviate unnecessary delays in infrastructure development that risk economic growth. For too long, Washington has delayed advancing durable and meaningful permitting reform, but the time to act is now. Increasingly, we’re seeing strong evidence that other countries, including China, have developed sufficient power infrastructure to quickly scale their digital infrastructure and AI capabilities. This would have concerning implications for U.S. national security and future global economic leadership. In short, we risk being left behind. Comprehensive permitting reform is a must-have for America’s continued global leadership. We look forward to working with Congress to advance these critical reforms.” – Data Center Coalition

“BPC Action commends Reps. Scott Peters (D-CA) and Andy Barr (R-KY) for their leadership on the Speed and Reliability Act, a commonsense bill that will expedite the siting and permitting of interregional transmission lines.  Building out a reliable electric grid is essential to meet our skyrocketing energy demand and ensure energy affordability. We look forward to working with Congress on comprehensive permitting reform.” – Michele Stockwell, President, Bipartisan Policy Center Action (BPC Action)  

“Building long-distance transmission lines is essential to meet rising power demand, support the energy transition, and address surging electric bills, but some permitting processes can delay or stymie projects. This bipartisan legislation would be a crucial step toward getting much-needed power lines built in an efficient and responsible manner.”– Talia Calnek-Sugin, Senior Policy Advocate, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)

“Energy demand is skyrocketing, prices are surging, and we are in the midst of the AI race. At a time when we need to move more electricity to ensure reliable and affordable power for Americans, complex permitting systems are holding us back. Transmission must be included in any permitting reform package, and the American Conservation Coalition Action and our thousands of members across the country commend this bipartisan proposal to streamline permitting for critical transmission projects and bolster our nation’s grid.” – Chris Barnard, President, American Conservation Coalition Action 

“The SPEED and Reliability Act would give America the nationally coordinated tools needed to build big at a time when defense-critical facilities such as data centers and heavy manufacturing are urgently seeking reliable power. We thank Representatives Peters and Barr for their leadership and look forward to working with them and their colleagues to enact bold reforms to meet the demands of the 21st Century.” – Avery Ash, Senior Vice President for Government Affairs, Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE) 

“The large industrial sector supports the goals of this bipartisan bill addressing electric transmission, a testament to effective collaboration aimed at enhancing the grid’s reliability and affordability. This crucial legislation helps cut through permitting bottlenecks, positioning the United States to re-energize domestic manufacturing, lead the AI race, and stimulate broad economic growth in the energy and manufacturing sectors.” – Karen Onaran, President and CEO, Electricity Consumers Resource Council 

“We need to get more clean, reliable, cheap energy onto our grid, and we need the transmission to get it to people’s homes. Families are paying too much for their electric bill each month, and extreme weather is causing more frequent blackouts. The SPEED and Reliability Act will supply more electricity to our homes, prevent blackouts during intense storms and cut costs for consumers. This proposal finds important common ground, and we look forward to working with the bill’s authors to identify more robust community engagement measures.” – Joanna Slaney, Vice President for Political and Government Affairs, Environmental Defense Fund 

“Amid soaring load growth and rising costs, the SPEED and Reliability Act would provide the tools to build the reliable, affordable grid America needs.” – Thomas Hochman, Director of Infrastructure Policy, Foundation for American Innovation 

“The SPEED and Reliability Act makes clear that leaders on both sides of the aisle recognize the essential role transmission plays in delivering reliable and affordable power to communities nationwide. I commend the sponsors for advancing legislation that cuts red tape and clarifies FERC’s authority over nationally significant lines.” – Liza Reed, Director of Climate and Energy, Niskanen Center 

“Our outdated permitting policies are hindering the ability to enhance our grid, causing the U.S. to lose investment, risk reliable power delivery to homes and businesses, burden families with rising bills, and fall behind. Energy politization is threatening American competitiveness and harming consumers. Building transmission infrastructure to power a modern economy deserves broad bipartisan support. This bill is a step in the right direction.” – Frank Macchiarola, Chief Advocacy Officer, American Clean Power Association (ACP) 

“To power our AI-driven future and grow American manufacturing, we need to significantly grow the grid. The ability to move that new electricity generated to consumers requires a dramatically more efficient process. We commend the bipartisan efforts by Reps. Barr (R-KY) and Peters (D-CA) for introducing this proposal as permitting reform discussions progress in Congress.” – Jeremy Harrell, CEO, ClearPath Action. 
 
“It is inexcusably difficult to plan and build regional transmission today. The R Street Institute applauds this bipartisan effort to reform unworkable statutory schemes and reduce planning and permitting barriers, improving reliability while minimizing costs.” – Kent Chandler, Resident Senior Fellow in Energy and Environmental Policy, R Street Institute. 

“Efficient transmission buildout and improved load forecasting are essential for providing customers with affordable and reliable power. Today, transmission lines needed to deliver power to customers often face duplicative reviews and a regulatory system that rewards inefficient development and suppresses efficient development. We appreciate Congress’s continued work to make it easier to scale up new industries while keeping costs low for all customers and look forward to working with all Members of Congress on these important issues.” – Jeff Dennis, Executive Director, Electricity Customer Alliance 

“It takes a lot of energy to be a mom.  And these days it seems like we all demand more energy than ever. So we light up when we hear good news from lawmakers: a pragmatic, solutions-oriented bipartisan bill to get more clean electricity quickly and reliably to the places that need it most: our communities, our neighborhoods, our schools, and our homes. The SPEED and Reliability Act would cut through unnecessary delays in building out the electricity superhighway of the future—one all families need right now. Moms expect that lawmakers will find ways to listen to what communities need and want, too, as they create better ways to light up and power our lives—and protect our children’s futures.” – Dominique Browning, Director and Co-Founder, Moms Clean Air Force 

To learn more about the SPEED and Reliability Act, click here. 

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Scott Peters (52nd District of California)

Washington, DC – Yesterday, Representatives Scott Peters (CA-50) and Bill Huizenga (MI-04) introduced the bipartisan No Budget, No Pay Act to prevent Congress from getting paid unless it does its job and passes a budget on time.

The federal government is currently shutdown, but dysfunction isn’t new to Washington, DC. Since the last major overhaul of federal budgeting and spending laws in 1974, Congress has only passed a budget resolution and all the accompanying spending bills on time once.

California also had a history of budget gridlock. Every year, our state legislature is required to pass a budget by June 15th. The governor must then sign or issue a veto by June 27th before the beginning of the Fiscal Year on July 1st. California only passed a budget before the start of the fiscal year 10 times in the 30 years before the state implemented its own No Budget, No Pay law. 

Putting their own pay on the line lit a fire under state lawmakers. The result: California’s budget has been signed on time every year.

“Our most important responsibility is the power of the purse, but Congress has again failed to do its job.” Congressman Peters said. “No Budget, No Pay will stop Members of Congress from getting paid unless they get a budget done on time. When the government shuts down, countless Americans are forced to endure the consequences. That’s why, each week for the duration of the shutdown, I am donating my take-home salary to local nonprofits working to support San Diegans who are suffering because of the shutdown.”

Last week, Rep. Peters donated the equivalent of one week’s worth of take-home pay to a non-profit that supports enlisted servicemembers.

“Addressing our challenging fiscal situation will be difficult unless policymakers do the hard work of budgeting,” said Zach Moller, Director of the Economic Program at Third Way. “The No Budget, No Pay Act led by Representatives Scott Peters (D-CA) and Bill Huizenga (R-MI), presents a way for Congress to focus on this essential task. Ideas like this need to be in the mix as we try to both break out of a government shutdown and consider improvements to the budget and appropriations process.”

“No Budget, No Pay is a much-needed enforcement mechanism to ensure that Congress is doing its job and passing the federal budget on time – something that has not occurred since 1996. We are also deeply appreciative of the bipartisan leadership shown by Representatives Huizenga and Peters to introduce this and other bills,” said Carolyn Bordeaux, Executive Director of the Concord Coalition. “This legislation, paired with their bipartisan Fiscal Commission Act, could help this country make significant strides towards a budget process that is on time and on target to close the deficit. We urge all Members of Congress to support these bills and move them swiftly to the floor and to the President’s desk.”

The bill text can be found here. 

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

Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries held a press conference where he pointed out that House and Senate Democrats position remain unified while Donald Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans continue to be missing in action in terms of making life better for the American people.

LEADER JEFFRIES: This is Day 20 of the Trump-Republican shutdown and Republicans have shown zero interest in reopening the government, enacting a bipartisan spending agreement that actually is designed to make life better for the American people and address the healthcare crisis that Republicans have created that is devastating people all across America. Our position as Democrats remains clear in the House and in the Senate. We need to reopen the government, and we need to do that now. We need to find a bipartisan path toward enacting a spending agreement that actually is designed to make life better for the American people, as opposed to hurting everyday Americans. And we need to decisively address the Republican healthcare crisis that is crushing people all across the country—working-class America, rural America, urban America, the heartland of America, small town America and Black and brown communities all across America. 

The Republican healthcare crisis, as Marjorie Taylor Greene has repeatedly indicated, is real and it’s having devastating impacts that are becoming increasingly apparent to the American people. In Idaho, 100,000 Americans are at risk of losing their healthcare if the Affordable Care Act tax credits expire because it will become unaffordable for them. In Georgia, Virginia and Maryland, people are now finding out that their health insurance premiums are about to increase, in some instances by more than $2,000 per month for a total of $24,000 per year. No one can afford those types of increases. In Alabama, it’s now clear that at least 50 rural hospitals are at risk of closing because of what Republicans have done in devastating Medicaid in their One Big Ugly Bill. The Republican healthcare crisis is real. And every day that passes by without action, it gets even worse for hardworking American taxpayers. 

Full press availability can be watched here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Mike Johnson (LA-04)

WASHINGTON — Today, The Hill published a news story which exposed the Democrats fear of their Far-Left base as their motive for continuously voting to keep the government closed.

“’People are going to get hammered’ if they vote for the House-passed bill to reopen the government and keep it funded through Nov. 21, said one Democratic senator who requested anonymity to talk candidly about their party,” The Hill wrote.

“A second person familiar with the political dynamics within the Senate Democratic caucus, who spoke with The Hill ahead of the ‘No Kings’ protests, said centrist senators are fearful of breaking with leaders while party activists are planning the anti-Trump rallies,” The Hill story continues. “‘We would have enough votes’ to reopen the government ‘if people were not terrified of getting the guillotine,’ the second person said.”

Read the full story here or below:

Some Democrats skeptical about their leadership’s hard-line stance against reopening the federal government privately acknowledge that they fear getting “hammered” by their liberal base if they vote for a Republican funding bill.

Grassroots Democrats frustrated with the Trump administration have been demanding a fight, and on Saturday millions showed up at “No Kings” demonstrations across the country to protest the president’s government.

In that context, Democrats know they will get hit hard by a number of voices on the left if they do not get something for opening the government.

“People are going to get hammered” if they vote for the House-passed bill to reopen the government and keep it funded through Nov. 21, said one Democratic senator who requested anonymity to talk candidly about their party.

A second person familiar with the political dynamics within the Senate Democratic caucus, who spoke with The Hill ahead of the “No Kings” protests, said centrist senators are fearful of breaking with leaders while party activists are planning the anti-Trump rallies.

“We would have enough votes” to reopen the government “if people were not terrified of getting the guillotine,” the second person said.

Only three members of the Democratic caucus have voted to reopen the government: Sens. John Fetterman (Pa.), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.) and Angus King (Maine), an Independent who caucuses with Democrats.

On Thursday, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.) became the fourth Democrat to signal unease with the party’s staunch opposition to what in normal times would be relatively uncontroversial funding bills when she voted Thursday to advance an $852 billion defense funding bill.

Liberal activists called the votes to fund the Department of Defense and to reopen the government without Republican concessions on health care “baffling” and a “mistake.”

“Sens. Shaheen, Cortez Masto, and Fetterman voting with Republicans today is baffling,” said Andrew O’Neill, the national advocacy director at Indivisible, a progressive group.

“This was not a good faith effort from Republicans to end the shutdown with bipartisan negotiations,” he added. “It was GOP political theater, and these three Democrats joined right in.”

Fetterman pushed back against that criticism and defended his vote for the defense spending bill as motivated by concern for military families who might have to rely on food banks if they stop getting paychecks.

“I voted yes to pay our service members. That’s service members over party. That’s not baffling to me,” he said.

All of this is music to the ears of Republicans, who want centrist Democrats to feel the pain.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) plans to keep holding votes on a House-passed continuing resolution, hoping to pick up at least five more Democratic votes so the government can reopen.

Democratic senators acknowledge a handful of their colleagues would love to end the tense standoff over federal funding, but they say those members are worried a liberal backlash could end their political careers.

“Are there enough Democrats to join Republicans to reopen the government? Not in the near term,” said the Democratic senator who requested anonymity. “There is no bipartisan conversation that’s anything but bulls   .”

The senator said centrist Democratic colleagues would vote to open the government “yesterday” if left to their own devices but don’t want to risk an angry backlash from the base.

Emma Lydon, the managing director of P Street, the government relations sister organization of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said Democrats who vote for the House-passed short-term funding bill are making a “mistake.”

She said voting to reopen the government when millions of Americans are projected to lose their health insurance due to rising premiums “would be out of step with what the American people want.”

“What Republicans are trying to do is dismantle the ACA brick by brick,” she said, referring to the Affordable Care Act.

Lydon said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) and the nine other Senate Democrats who voted for a partisan House-passed government funding bill in March in order to avoid a shutdown made a “mistake.”

“It’s been clear to them that the American people don’t want to see a Democratic Party that capitulates to Republican extremism. They want a party that stands up for people’s health care, that stands up for our democracy and that’s what they’re doing now,” she said.

Democratic strategists say the main driver of the political fear within the Democratic caucus is online fundraising, which is largely driven by social media.

Sources familiar with the political motivations driving the Senate Democrats’ shutdown stance point to Sen. Jon Ossoff (Ga.), who is the most vulnerable Senate Democrat up for reelection in 2026, as an example of the dilemma facing Democrats.

One Democratic insider argued that Ossoff, who represents a swing state that voted for President Trump in 2024, needs to raise money from the liberal base to win.

“His calculus is, ‘Do I vote to open the government up and get crushed and can’t raise a single dollar of low-dollar money or do I vote to shut the government down and get $3 million [from online fundraising]?’” the source argued. 

Ossoff has voted 10 times against the House-passed funding bill and voted on Thursday against advancing bipartisan bill to fund the Department of Defense.

The first-term Democratic senator said he’s always ready to work across the aisle to solve problems and blamed House Republicans for being on recess since late September to avoid potential negotiations on rising health care costs.

“We need a bipartisan solution that prevents health insurance premiums from doubling and reopens the government. My constituents don’t want health care costs to go up by thousands of dollars and they want the federal government open,” he told The Hill earlier this month.

Democrats said they opposed the defense appropriations bill because Republicans could not assure them it would move in tandem with the Labor and Health and Human Services appropriations bill, which funds many of their nondefense priorities.

Yet, some centrist Democrats are growing impatient with the impasse as they are forced to vote repeatedly on a House-passed clean continuing resolution while leaders in both parties have yet to even meet to address rising health care costs.

“I don’t think the leadership is talking to each other and I don’t see how we get a deal unless the people in charge decide they’re going to sit down and negotiate,” she said. “People in the rank-and-file are doing a lot of talking. It would be nice if our leaders were also talking.”

A source familiar with internal Democratic caucus dynamics said Shaheen’s vote to advance the defense bill Thursday was a signal to Republican colleagues that she’s open to reaching a deal to reopen the government, even though she has voted 10 times against the House-passed continuing resolution.

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

Carbajal Statement on DHS Secretary Noem Purchasing Luxury Private Jets During a Government Shutdown

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Lori Trahan (D-MA-03)

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) joined Representatives Lucy McBath (GA-06), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Lateefah Simon (CA-12), Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05), and 144 House Democrats to send a letter to Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought strongly condemning and urging the Trump Administration to rescind their decision to lay off federal employees that work on the education and support of students with disabilities and their families.

The Members are demanding immediate action from the administration, to reverse course and rescind the termination notices issued to staff in the Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), including employees in the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), the Rehabilitative Services Administration (RSA), the Office of Civil Rights (OCR), and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE). 

“Decimating these offices threatens accountability for special education and vocational rehabilitation funds, as well as the civil rights Congress has enshrined in federal law, at a time when schools nationwide are already struggling to meet the needs of students and when people with disabilities continue to face barriers to employment. Federal employees at OSERS play a key role in ensuring that federal dollars are spent appropriately and effectively to support students with disabilities. Without them, there will be no oversight to ensure that physically disabled students, blind/deaf children and teenagers, as well as students with dyslexia, autism, and other disabilities are receiving the free and appropriate public education they are guaranteed under the IDEA,” the lawmakers wrote.

“…These reckless terminations are just another in a line of actions by your administration that threaten the rights that individuals with disabilities have fought long and hard for. We urge you to immediately rescind your plans to wrongly fire employees at the agencies listed above so that they can continue working to ensure that every family, no matter where they live or their income, has access to an education that will set them up for a successful future regardless of their child’s disability,” the members continued.

Signers of the letter include United States Representatives Alma Adams, Gabe Amo, Becca Balint, Joyce Beatty, Donald Beyer, Julia Brownley, Shontel Brown, Nikki Budzinski, Salud Carbajal, André Carson, Troy Carter, Greg Casar, Ed Case, Sean Casten, Joaquin Castro, Judy Chu, Yvette Clarke, Steve Cohen, Joe Courtney, Angie Craig, Danny Davis, Diana DeGette, Suzan DelBene, Christopher Deluzio, Mark DeSaulnier, Debbie Dingell, Lloyd Doggett, Sarah Elfreth, Veronica Escobar, Dwight Evans, Shomari Figures, Lizzie Fletcher, Bill Foster, John Garamendi, Jesús García, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Maggie Goodlander, Josh Gottheimer, Jahana Hayes, James Himes, Jared Huffman, Glenn Ivey, Jonathan Jackson, Sara Jacobs, Pramila Jayapal, Henry Johnson, Julie Johnson, William Keating, Robin Kelly, Timothy Kennedy, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Greg Landsman, Summer Lee, Susie Lee, Ted Lieu, Seth Magaziner, Doris Matsui, Lucy McBath, Sarah McBride, April McClain Delaney, Jennifer McClellan, Betty McCollum, Kristen McDonald Rivet, James McGovern, LaMonica McIver, Robert Menendez, Gwen Moore, Joseph Morelle, Kelly Morrison, Seth Moulton, Kevin Mullin, Eleanor Norton, Ilhan Omar, Jimmy Panetta, Chris Pappas, Scott Peters, Brittany Pettersen, Chellie Pingree, Mark Pocan, Mike Quigley, Delia Ramirez, Emily Randall, Jamie Raskin, Andrea Salinas, Linda Sánchez, Janice Schakowsky, Bradley Schneider, Kim Schrier, Brad Sherman, Lateefah Simon, Adam Smith, Eric Sorensen, Melanie Stansbury, Haley Stevens, Marilyn Strickland, Suhas Subramanyam, Eric Swalwell, Mark Takano, Dina Titus, Rashida Tlaib, Jill Tokuda, Paul Tonko, Norma Torres, Ritchie Torres, Lori Trahan, Derek Tran, Juan Vargas, Gabe Vasquez, Marc Veasey, Nydia Velázquez, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Maxine Waters, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Nikema Williams, and Frederica Wilson.

The letter is endorsed by National Center for Learning Disabilities, All4Ed, National Association of School Psychologists, Autistic Self Advocacy Network, EdTrust, AACTE (American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education), Advocacy Without Borders, National Association of School Psychologist, Deaf Equality, OT Leaders and Legacies Society, Division of Evaluation and Assessment for Learning, Network of OT Practitioners with Disabilities & Supporters, Touch the Future Inc, National Association of Statewide Independent Living Councils (NASILC), Prevent Blindness, United Spinal Association, Angelman Syndrome Foundation, First Focus on Children, CommunicationFIRST, Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, The Coelho Center for Disability Law, Policy, and Innovation, Made for Math, National Association of the Deaf, Educating All Learners Alliance, National Association for College Admission Counseling, Educators for Excellence, American Association of University Women (AAUW), MomsRising, Council of Administrators of Special Education, Diversability, Dicapta, Association of People Supporting Employment First (APSE), National Parents Union, American Occupational Therapy Association, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), The Center for Learner Equity, Division of Early Childhood, The Ability Challenge, American Psychological Association, Griffin-Hammis Associates, The Center for Enriched Living, GLSEN, National Education Association, UnidosUS, Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools, and Yes! Access.

The full text of the letter can be found here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Pete Aguilar (31 CD Ca)

Democrats are calling on Republicans to come to the negotiating table to find a bipartisan agreement that reopens the government and protects Americans’ access to quality, affordable health care 
Rep. Pete Aguilar (CA-33) recently held a press conference at the Bloomington Community Health Center to highlight how Republican cuts to Medi-Cal, California’s version of the federal Medicaid program, could harm Inland Empire residents who receive health care at Community Health Systems, Inc. facilities. Nearly 70 percent of the patients treated at Community Health Systems, Inc. facilities throughout the Inland Empire rely on Medi-Cal to afford their health care.
“Right now, community health centers are under attack by Donald Trump and Republicans,” said Rep. Pete Aguilar. “From primary care to dental care to behavioral care, community health centers help keep our families and neighbors here in the Inland Empire healthy. Republican cuts to Medi-Cal are going to throw people in our community off their health insurance. That means thousands of seniors, children, people with disabilities and our other neighbors may be forced to turn to emergency rooms and other more expensive forms of health care when they get sick—or go without care altogether. This will drive up the costs of health care for everyone in the Inland Empire and across the country. Democrats will keep fighting against these harmful funding cuts and continue calling on Republicans to work with us to pass a bipartisan government funding bill that protects health care.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman David Scott (GA-13)

WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, Congressman David Scott (GA-13), a senior member on the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC), and Committee Democrats sent a letter to Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, regarding the decision to bailout Argentina without clear enforceable conditions or protection from losses. The letter admonishes the department for risking well over $20 billion in taxpayer money when American farmers are struggling and workers are not getting paid because of the Republicans’ reckless shutdown.

Congressman David Scott and HFSC Democrats sharply criticize Secretary Bessent’s use of Treasury’s Exchange Stabilization Fund (ESF) and establishment of the $20 billion swap line to prop up Argentina’s worsening currency crisis. While the secretary has broad discretion over how funds are deployed, they note that ESF assistance is not intended to provide open-ended bailout financing for foreign governments or to outright purchase a foreign currency, like the peso, which has lost more than 27 percent of its value against the dollar in 2025.

“The U.S. is effectively stepping in to backstop a volatile Argentine peso with little to no economic safeguards—despite an ongoing shutdown and Argentina’s long history of fiscal mismanagement and chronic instability,” said Congressman David Scott. “Secretary Bessent’s reckless decision means U.S. taxpayers will be exposed to extreme risk: a sharp peso devaluation, collateral losses, or another likely default by the Argentine government. To this day, the Treasury Department has failed to disclose how it plans to respond to large mark-to-market losses or rollover risk on holdings if the peso continues to fall. In order to protect Americans’ interests, a bailout of this size must have enforceable conditions, proper congressional consultation, and clear risk disclosures. Anything less is unacceptable.”

Congressman David Scott and HFSC Democrats are calling on Secretary Bessent to provide full transparency regarding Treasury’s bailout of Argentina, including:

• How much Argentine peso exposure Treasury has accumulated to date through the peso-purchase program and swap line purchases?
• Whether Treasury required that Argentina adopt structural reforms, such as fiscal primary balance targets, monetization limits, or foreign-exchange regime adjustments?
• What is the exact cost, schedule, collateral, and risk evaluation for the $20 billion currency-swap arrangement?
• What exit strategy and safeguards are in place to prevent rollover dependency or in case the bailout fails?

Access the full letter to Secretary Bessent here.

List of HFSC co-signers: David Scott (GA), Brad Sherman (CA), Gregory Meeks (NY), Bill Foster (IL), Emanuel Cleaver (MO), Joyce Beatty (OH), Juan Vargas (CA), Vicente Gonzalez (TX), Sean Casten (IL), Brittany Pettersen (D-CO), Sam Liccardo (D-CA), in addition to Marcy Kaptur (OH).

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

Pressley and Educators at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute Engaged Girl Scouts in Mock-Congress Programming

Photos (Dropbox)

BOSTON – This weekend, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) surprised 40 Girl Scouts during their visit to the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for a special event co-hosted by the Congresswoman’s Office and the Institute titled “Girls Leading Government.” On the Institute’s replica U.S. Senate Floor, the Girl Scouts were sworn in as “Senators for a Day,” and worked together to solve a policy challenge, draft legislation, deliver floor speeches, and more.

“Our girls are limitless. It was an amazing, fulfilling day. I’m inspired and encouraged by our Girl Scouts and their leadership,” said Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley. “I’m grateful to the Edward M. Kennedy Institute team for their partnership, and for their commitment to educating the public. Their curriculum offers a powerful sightline into a day in Congress, encourages civic engagement, and inspires our young leaders to step in to their power.”

The Girl Scouts also heard from Rep. Pressley about her experience as a Congresswoman representing the Massachusetts 7^th Congressional District. Photos from the event are available here.

Prior to her time in Congress, Rep. Pressley served as a mentor at Big Sister Boston and launched ABC – Ayanna’s BIG Challenge, a year-long initiative to recruit Big Sisters and mentors for young people living in the Boston neighborhoods with the longest waiting lists for adult mentors.

Throughout her time in public service, Rep. Pressley has been a champion for young women and girls and has consistently supported policies and investments that support their learning and allow them to thrive.

In 2023, Rep. Pressley visited Dorchester to celebrate $250,000 in new Community Project Funding she recently secured for Big Sister Association of Greater Boston and joined mentors and staff for a roundtable discussion about how the funding will support Big Sister’s one-to-one mentoring and enrichment programs for girls.

In 2021, Rep. Pressley introduced the STRONG Support for Children Act to take a holistic and community-based approach to addressing the growing crisis of childhood trauma.

In 2021, Rep. Pressley led her colleagues in re-introducing her Ending PUSHOUT Act to end the punitive pushout of girls of color from schools and disrupt the school-to-confinement pathway. She also introduced the Counseling Not Criminalization in Schools Act to invest in safe and nurturing school climates that support all students and bring an end to the over-policing of our nation’s K-12 schools. These bills are informed by Rep. Pressley’s People’s Justice Guarantee and is a continuation of her longstanding history of working to address issues of criminalization during her tenure on the Boston City Council.

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