Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif)
San Jose, CA – U.S. Representative Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), a former prosecutor, reintroduced the Immigrant Witness and Victim Protection Act, which would strengthen protections for undocumented immigrant victims and witnesses of crimes who cooperate with law enforcement. The legislation aims to reduce barriers that prevent survivors from seeking justice and ensure they are not penalized for coming forward. Rep. Gwen Moore (WI-04) is co-leading this legislation in the 119th Congress.
Immigrant women and children are particularly vulnerable to abuse, with the domestic violence rate among immigrant women at three times the national average. U and T visas are essential tools that allow undocumented victims and witnesses of serious crimes to safely assist law enforcement without fear of deportation. The U Visa program currently operates under an annual statutory cap of 10,000, but the demand for these critical visas has drastically outpaced the supply.
Despite federal protections such as the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and U and T visas, survivors often hesitate to report crimes due to fear of deportation or immigration-related retaliation. Project 2025, which is largely seen as the policy blueprint for a second Trump Administration, calls for the dismantling of the U and T visa programs. A recent policy change from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has resulted in U and T visa applicants facing enforcement action.
The Immigrant Witness and Victim Protection Act would lift arbitrary caps on U visas, prevent the detention or deportation of eligible applicants before protections are granted, and establish a statutory timeline for issuing work authorization permits. These provisions would help ensure that survivors and witnesses can safely engage with the justice system and avoid further exploitation.
“These days, with this Administration, many non-citizen victims and witnesses won’t come forward to report a crime, as they feel they will be deported rather than rewarded for participating in our criminal justice system,” said Rep. Panetta. “My legislation would remove obstacles that prevent these undocumented individuals from cooperating with law enforcement without the risk of being detained or deported. As a former prosecutor and now as a federal representative, I know that strengthening trust with our immigrant communities can be essential to holding criminals accountable and ensuring our overall public safety.”
“The Trump administration has subjected T and U visa applicants to immigration enforcement across the country, including in Milwaukee. Yessenia Ruano, a trafficking victim, T-visa applicant, and upstanding Milwaukee resident, was forced to self-deport before her application was fully reviewed. My other constituent, Ramon Morales Reyes, a U-visa applicant, was framed by the person who robbed him and wanted him deported before he could testify in a criminal case. He was detained before eventually receiving bond,” said Rep. Moore. “By subjecting these vulnerable individuals to immigration enforcement, the Trump administration is helping create a two-tiered justice system that empowers criminal and discourages certain victims from coming forward. Congress created these visas as a tool to make our communities safer and support the flow of critical information during criminal investigations. This legislation creates stronger T and U visa protections, helping victims and law enforcement.”
The legislation is supported by numerous advocacy organizations working on behalf of immigrant rights, domestic violence prevention, and criminal justice reform. Supporting organizations include; Tahirih Justice Center, VALOR, ASISTA, Esperanza United, API-GBV, Freedom Network USA, Advocates for Human Rights, Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (Cast), and End SIJS Backlog Coalition.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE)
Washington, DC — Representatives Adrian Smith (R-NE), Nikki Budzinski (D-IL), both co-chairs of the Biofuels Caucus, announced introduction of the bipartisan Ethanol for America Act. This legislation would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to finalize a rulemaking from 2021 to make the E15 fuel label clearer and more consumer-oriented. It would also confirm the compatibility of E15 with existing underground fuel storage and dispensing equipment, ensuring business owners are not required to make costly and unnecessary infrastructure changes.
Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced companion legislation in the Senate.
The members released the following statements.
“Estimates show access to E15 at the fuel pump can save consumers up to 30 cents per gallon,” said Rep. Smith. “This bipartisan bill recognizes E15 compatibility with existing infrastructure and reduces red tape for retailers who wish to provide consumers with more options at the pump. I thank Rep. Budzinski and Sens. Ernst and Klobuchar for their collaboration.”
“I’ve long been a strong advocate for year-round E15, having seen firsthand the benefits it brings to consumers at the pump and to the farmers across Central and Southern Illinois,” saidRep. Budzinski. “We should be doing everything we can to expand access, not create barriers, which is why I’m proud to join Representative Smith and Senators Ernst and Klobuchar in this important push for E15 storage and availability.”
“It’s no secret that access to E15 creates lower prices at the pump for consumers, value added to homegrown crops, stronger rural communities, and domestic energy dominance,” said Sen. Ernst. “I’m working to remove regulatory roadblocks and ensure biofuels are offered to folks filling up their cars using existing infrastructure at local gas stations across our nation. We cannot allow outdated red tape to stand in the way of unleashing the benefits of E15.”
Original cosponsors in the House of the Ethanol for America Act include Reps. Dusty Johnson (R-SD), Tracey Mann (R-KS), Derek Schmidt (R-KS), Mike Flood (R-NE), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), and Brad Finstad (R-MN)
The legislation is supported by industry groups including the Renewable Fuels Association and Growth Energy, which provided the following statements.
“We thank Reps. Smith and Budzinski for introducing this commonsense legislation, which would lower pump prices for American consumers, bolster our nation’s energy security, and open new markets for our nation’s family farmers,” said Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “The most effective way to keep a lid on gas prices is to expand and diversify the domestic fuel supply with higher ethanol blends like E15. Knocking down regulatory barriers and allowing E15 to be stored and distributed in existing infrastructure will lower fuel costs for Americans and strengthen the market’s resilience against global supply disruptions.”
“Consumer demand for E15 grows each year, but onerous labeling and underground tank requirements have prevented many retailers from expanding access to better options at the pump,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “We applaud Representatives Smith and Budzinski for spearheading the push to complete the work that EPA started during President Trump’s first term and eliminate needless barriers standing between U.S. consumers and lower-cost E15. This important effort will put more homegrown energy into the marketplace, reduce prices at the pump, and open critical new markets for U.S. farmers and biofuel producers.”
Additionally, Smith, Budzinski, Ernst, and Klobuchar with 13 colleagues in the House and Senate sent a corresponding letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, calling on him to deem existing fuel infrastructure compatible with E15 and outlining:
Research shows underground storage tanks and dispensing equipment compatible with E10 are also compatible with E15
E15 is approved for 96 percent of vehicles on the road today with over 160 billion miles driven using E15, proving it is a safe and reliable choice
E15 routinely offers lower prices—saving drivers 10 to 30 cents per gallon—and approving current infrastructure avoids costly upgrades for retailers
Expanding E15 access boosts demand for U.S.-grown corn and strengthens farm incomes, helping create domestic markets for agricultural products.
BACKGROUND:
Congressman Smith first introduced a bill to approve year-round sale of E15 in 2015.
On February 6, 2025, Smith led nearly 30 colleagues in sending a bipartisan letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. The letter emphasized the important role of the American biofuels industry in maximizing energy abundance and affordability while encouraging the EPA to issue timely and science-driven guidance to fulfill the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS).
On February 13, Smith introduced the Nationwide Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act to enable the year-round, nationwide sale of E15. Read more about the bipartisan, bicameral legislation here.
On March 11, Smith led a bipartisan press conference highlighting grassroots support for eliminating restrictions on E15 sales.
On April 22, Smith led 25 members of Congress in a letter urging the administration to lower prices at the pump by providing a summertime E-15 waiver.
On May 16, Smith joined 25 colleagues in a letter to the President urging for robust blending requirements in the ongoing RFS rulemaking.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (15th District of Texas)
SAN BENITO, TEXAS – Today, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez announced that hesent a letter to Juan Agudelo, ICE Field Office Director for Enforcement and Removal Operations, urging the agency to provide Juana Melendez additional time to submit a new Military Parole-in-Place application which would delay her deportation. With the assistance of her immigration attorney, she submitted an appeal that is awaiting a decision by USCIS.
Ms. Melendez is currently scheduled to be deported after living in South Texas for 25 years, owning a small landscaping business, and raising her children, two of which are proud active-duty U.S. service members.
“This is shameful and deeply un-American,” said Congressman Gonzalez. “The Trump Administration’s mass deportation policies are not only causing economic harm to our communities, they are now breaking military families apart. We cannot deport families of American heroes that pay taxes and contribute positively to our community. Her children are dutifully serving our country, her small business is providing growth and opportunities for our community, how can anyone truly justify this?”
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA)
Washington, DC — Today, Congressman Brad Sherman (CA-32) released the following statement:
“The ongoing hunger crisis in Gaza is tragic, and all must come together to reverse it immediately. Israel, the United Nations, and all NGOs operating in Gaza must work to surge humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza – not Hamas or criminal gangs, who exacerbate this hunger crisis by reselling free aid for astronomical prices in local markets. The best way to undercut this criminal enterprise is to flood Gaza with food aid and eliminate scarcity.
I welcome the steps Israel has taken, including instituting humanitarian pauses and conducting airdrops of aid. However, these steps alone are not sufficient – it is clear that the current aid delivery system needs to be scaled up to adequately meet the needs in Gaza. That includes significantly increasing the number of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s distribution sites to prevent crowding, establishing safer distribution processes, and distributing higher quantities of aid each and every day.
I also call on all UN agencies and NGOs delivering aid to stop playing politics and work with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to improve the aid delivery process – all mechanisms to feed Gazans should be pursued, and there shouldn’t be a turf war between the traditional aid agencies and the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
Of particular concern is the scores of truckloads of food that are sitting inside Gaza but not being distributed by aid organizations. Israel has agreed to distribute this food inside Gaza or to allow the World Food Program and other aid organizations to distribute it within Gaza. Yet the World Food Program and others are unwilling to distribute the food within Gaza or let Israel do so.
The fastest way to alleviate the suffering of Gazans and the hostages is for Hamas to release the hostages and lay down its arms and depart for Iran or another country willing to accept them. This would pave the way for legitimate Arab-led governance and allowing Gaza to be rebuilt.
Those who criticize Israel but are silent in the face of Hamas’s starvation of hostages like Evyatar David and fail to place any pressure or accountability on Hamas only embolden Hamas’s continued rejection of ceasefire offers and encourage them to carry on with the fighting. Hamas must be defeated, and Israel and all aid agencies must work together to surge aid into Gaza immediately and alleviate this crisis.”
Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Don Beyer (D-VA)
Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), author of the bipartisan Improving Reporting to Prevent Hate Act and the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, which was signed into law in 2021, today issued the following statement on the FBI’s releaseof 2024 hate crimes statistics:
“According to the FBI’s release of 2024 hate crimes statistics, only 16,419 agencies out of 18,800 agencies nationwide participated in hate crimes data collection, with 81 percent of agencies reporting zero hate crimes including at least 57 localities with populations of 100,000 or more. The 2024 hate crimes statistics illustrate the urgent need to improve hate crimes reporting across the country and in particular, accurate hate crimes reporting from law enforcement agencies representing cities with populations of 100,000 or more.
“The jurisdictions that did report hate crimes reported 11,679 offenses, the second-largest total since the FBI started keeping data. Religiously motivated incidents increased by 3.1 percent with 3,096 offenses reported, and of those 69 percent were anti-Jewish incidents. 7,043 of the hate crime offenses reported were motivated by race, ethnicity, or ancestry, and 50.4% of these reported offenses were motivated by anti-Black bias.
“Accurate and reliable hate crimes data is key to keeping our communities safe and preventing hate crimes from happening. But right now, major gaps in reporting make that hard. I wrote the Improving Reporting to Prevent Hate Act to help address these challenges.
“The lack of credible and complete national hate crimes data collection poses a significant challenge to prevention efforts. Congress must pass the Improving Reporting to Prevent Hate Act to ensure we accurately collect this data and use it effectively in the fight against hate.”
BOSTON – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), a longstanding champion for workers and organized labor, issued the following statement slamming the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for terminating the collective bargaining agreements for most VA bargaining unit employees. As a parent, caregiver, and former service industry worker, Congresswoman Pressley has consistently advocated for policies that bolster workers’ rights and strengthen labor unions.
“Yesterday’s brazen decision by the Trump Administration to put union-busting before the hard-working VA staff and the veterans they serve is devastating and shameful. Unilaterally terminating collectively bargained contracts for more than 330,000 workers nationwide—most of whom are represented by the American Federation of Government Employees, and close to 4,000 employees in VA Boston alone, is part of this administration’s continued assault on dedicated public servants and a total disregard for the health and well-being of the veterans and families that rely on services they provide.
“Donald Trump and VA Secretary Doug Collins may believe they can silence the workers who have called out this administration’s hollow promises to our veterans, but we will fight this dangerous and blatant attack on the nurses, doctors, benefits specialists, housekeepers, electricians, painters, food service workers, mental health clinicians, janitors and other hardworking people caring for the veterans this administration uses as a prop. I call on the Trump Administration to immediately reverse this decision.”
Earlier this year, Pressley condemned Trump’s executive order to end collective bargaining rights for hundreds of thousands of federal employees.
Rep. Pressley has been a committed voice for federal workers pushing back against the Trump Administration’s efforts to decimate federal agencies. In a House Oversight Committee hearing in March, Rep. Pressley slammed Republicans for attempting to gut federal unions and weaken worker protections.
BOSTON – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), a member of the House Oversight Committee and a survivor of sexual abuse, led committee Democrats in calling for a Congressional hearing to prioritize the individuals who survived the horrific abuse associated with by Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and their associates, and whose firsthand accounts may not be sufficiently represented in the Department of Justice’s records.
The letter comes as the Committee moves forward with its investigation into Epstein, Maxwell, and their co-conspirators, and comes after Rep. Pressley successfully helped pass a motion by Congresswoman Summer Lee and Ranking Member Robert Garcia to force the Committee to subpoena the Epstein files.
“If we are to hold powerful people to account, our investigation must center the voices they tried to silence,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter. “To ensure that our investigation is comprehensive and credible, we urge the Committee to allow survivors the opportunity to provide their testimony if they wish to do so.”
In their letter to Chairman James Comer, Rep. Pressley and her colleagues detailed Epstein’s history exploiting and trafficking young women and girls, leaving them with deep, lasting trauma. The lawmakers argued that these individuals should have their stories heard and their healing centered in Congressional efforts to achieve transparency and accountability.
“If the Committee is to conduct credible oversight, it must hear directly from survivors, or their representatives, who volunteer to advance our investigation on their own terms,” the lawmakers continued. “Some survivors have expressed a clear willingness and desire to come before Congress, and the Committee cannot meet their strength and bravery with inaction.”
The lawmakers made the case that releasing the full, unredacted Epstein files will not tell the full story, and that hearing testimony from Maxwell, an unreliable and untrustworthy co-conspirator, while ignoring those who were abused, will only contribute to more pain for survivors and more misinformation for the public.
“For too long, powerful abusers and their enablers have been shielded by institutions more interested in protecting predators than centering survivors,” the lawmakers continued. “The Committee now has an opportunity to break that cycle. A public hearing focused on survivors who wish to speak out would be a meaningful step towards transparency, accountability, and healing.”
Joining Rep. Pressley in sending the letter are Ranking Member Robert Garcia and Representatives Eleanor Holmes Norton, Stephen F. Lynch, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ro Khanna, Kweisi Mfume, Summer Lee, Greg Casar, Jasmine Crockett, Emily Randall, Suhas Subramanyam, Yassamin Ansari, Lateefah Simon, Dave Min, and Rashida Tlaib.
In a recent interview, Rep. Pressley described why her work to subpoena the Epstein files is deeply personal to her.
This week, Rep. Pressley issued a statement after Oversight Democrats forced Chairman James Comer to issue a subpoena to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release files relating to child sex trafficker and Trump’s longtime friend Jeffrey Epstein.
In July 2024, Rep. Pressley reintroduced the Bringing an End to Harassment by Enhancing Accountability and Rejecting Discrimination (BE HEARD) in the Workplace Act of 2024. In June 2024, Rep. Pressley renewed her calls for accountability and survivor-focused solutions following the damning reports of a toxic work environment at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). In June 2024, Rep. Pressley also sent a letter to the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) requesting information about the botched closure of FCI Dublin, abuse of women while they were being transferred to other facilities, and BOP’s management of investigations into the staff sexual misconduct and abuse at FCI Dublin and other federal BOP facilities.
Rep. Pressley is also a lead co-sponsor of H.R. 5388, legislation that would prevent the Secretary of Education from rolling back Title IX protections for survivors, as well as H.Res. 560, a resolution calling for an impeachment inquiry into Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, following reporting on new allegations of sexual misconduct committed by the Associate Justice.
In April 2019, following the passage of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019, Rep. Pressley issued a statement honoring her mother, Sandra Pressley, a survivor of domestic violence. Rep. Pressley is also the lead co-sponsor of an amendment to the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) that would establish the first-ever grant program dedicated to supporting LGBTQ+ survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, which passed the House of Representatives in March 2021.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)
Today, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries appeared on ABC News Live to discuss Donald Trump and Republicans’ plans to gerrymander congressional maps with impunity and Democratic efforts to push back on their extremism.
JAY O’BRIEN: Joining me now to talk about all of that is House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Mr. Leader, welcome in, sir.
LEADER JEFFRIES: Good to be with you.
JAY O’BRIEN: I’m sure you’ve seen this today, but Senator John Cornyn of Texas said that the FBI has now promised him that they will get involved for searching for some of those Texas Democrats who fled the state. The FBI hasn’t commented one way or the other, but in your view, is this something the FBI even has the authority to get involved with?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Donald Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans are desperate and continue to demonstrate a willingness to weaponize federal law enforcement to try and target people they view as political adversaries. John Cornyn is a dead Senator walking. And this is another example of a desperate ploy to try to save his own skin even if it means engaging the FBI in what would be a corrupt abuse of power by the Trump administration. The FBI should be spending its time chasing down violent criminals, terrorists, drug traffickers and child predators, not targeting political adversaries in a democracy here in America.
JAY O’BRIEN: In your view then, Mr. Leader, would the FBI be acting illegally if it were to get involved in this and try to find and in other ways engage in this redistricting process?
LEADER JEFFRIES:There would be no authority for the FBI to target Democrats from the Texas legislature in connection with an act that Democrats have taken that is authorized by the Texas Constitution.
JAY O’BRIEN: We’ve had some Republicans on this show over the last few days and they have claimed that this redistricting effort is necessary. They say the political landscape in the state has changed. They say that they’re not just acting within President Trump’s wishes just because he’s asked. They say that the state has changed since the last 2020 census. What is your response when you hear that?
LEADER JEFFRIES: It’s the most ridiculous statement ever. This is a clear power grab because Donald Trump and House Republicans are desperate to try to hold on to their thin majority in the House of Representatives. Republicans have no track record of accomplishment to run on. Their One Big Ugly Bill is now a deeply unpopular law. It rips away healthcare from the American people, millions of people, including those in Texas. Steals food from the mouths of hungry children. And all of this is being done in order to enact massive tax breaks for their billionaire donors. Republicans promised that they were going to lower costs on day one. They haven’t lowered costs. Costs are going up, and the Trump tariffs are costing everyday Americans thousands of dollars per year.
JAY O’BRIEN: You called this redistricting effort a power grab. We’ve seen some Democratic governors now say that if Texas acts, they will respond. They will do mid-decade redistricting in their states, too. One of them is your home state of New York. Would you advise Democratic governors against doing that because, as we’ve seen Democrats say, there’s a view that this is just playing politics with people’s districts?
LEADER JEFFRIES: It’s important for us to respond coast to coast. And to the extent that there are responses that take place in California, New York or elsewhere, I’m confident that they will be done in a manner consistent with the law. And, to the extent necessary, voters will be asked to weigh in to determine the best course of action moving forward.
JAY O’BRIEN: But should that response involve redrawing districts in their states? Some of them have said they want to, but couldn’t that start a redistricting arms race?
LEADER JEFFRIES: The redistricting arms race has already begun, and it was started by Donald Trump and compliant Republicans in Texas. When Donald Trump says jump, the Republicans simply ask how high even if that means trying to strip away the voices of their own constituents and undermine the ability for there to be free and fair elections in the midterms next year.
JAY O’BRIEN: But if Democrats redistrict in their own states, do they lose in a way their moral authority on this issue?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Absolutely not. Certainly, under these circumstances, one cannot unilaterally disarm. The Republicans are counting on that as part of their scheme to try to steal the midterm elections and gerrymander these congressional maps with impunity across the country. We’re not going to stand for it. And the American people don’t expect us to stand for it because they know we are fighting for an economy that actually makes life better for them as opposed to an economy of the billionaires, by the billionaires and for the billionaires. We are fighting to protect Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security, and fighting to make sure that their children can have a future.
JAY O’BRIEN: We saw Vice President J.D. Vance in Indiana today. There’s talk of that state potentially engaging in mid-decade redistricting too. Did you expect to have to fight this redistricting fight this summer? Is this something that you had in your sights and you thought the White House would try to do, or did it come as a surprise?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, this is all unprecedented, but nothing comes as a surprise in terms of this group that is desperately trying to cling on to power as part of their effort to drive their extreme, right-wing agenda down the throats of the American people. As Democrats, we’re not afraid to make our case on the merits to everyday Americans, and upon doing that, we are confident that we will win back control of the majority in 2026. We’re prepared to continue to fight to lower the high cost of living, to fix our broken healthcare system, to clean up corruption in Washington, D.C., so that we have a government that actually works for the American people. Republicans cannot make a credible argument to maintain their majority based on what they’ve done, which is why we are seeing these extreme, partisan gerrymandering tactics being employed all across the country.
JAY O’BRIEN: While we have you, I want to get you on one piece of news today, which is we saw on tariffs, that laundry list of President Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs snap into place today. Congress is out on recess. That’s why you’re coming to us from New York. It’s why I’m not on the Hill today and I’m in this chair. Your Members are traveling in their various states and districts. Have you heard this issue come up in constituent conversations that you’ve had and your Members have had?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Yeah, as I’ve traveled throughout the district that I’m privileged to represent here in Brooklyn and all across the country, I’ve consistently heard from everyday Americans complaining about the fact that America is too expensive, that costs are too high. Donald Trump promised that he was going to lower costs for the American people, but costs, of course, continue to go up, inflation is going up and the Trump tariffs are gonna make things worse. And that is an issue of deep concern for people all across the country, whether they’re Democrats, Independents or Republicans.
JAY O’BRIEN: A question here that’s probably a little bit too soon, but I gotta ask it to you. When Congress comes back in just a couple of weeks in September, they’ve got to avert a government shutdown. And we’ve seen before Republicans not have the votes in their own ranks to pass government funding legislation. And there have been times, as you know better than anyone, that Democrats have stepped in and given them those votes to avert a government shutdown. Do you see Democrats doing that again here, or will they withhold those votes?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Leader Schumer and I sent a letter to John Thune and Mike Johnson earlier this week asking for a Four Corners sit-down conversation in a bipartisan and bicameral way so that we can work on an appropriations process that actually passes a spending bill that meets the needs of the American people in terms of their health, their safety, our national security and the economic well-being of everyday Americans who are struggling while working hard in this country. We haven’t heard from the Republicans as it relates to our offer to sit down and initiate this bipartisan discussion to try to get to a resolution. And perhaps we haven’t heard from them because Republicans are determined to shut the government down as part of their ideological effort to jam their extreme ideas down the throats of the American people. We’re not going to stand for it.
JAY O’BRIEN: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, thank you so much for your time, sir.
Source: United States House of Representatives – Julia Brownley (D-CA)
Washington, DC – Today, Congresswoman Julia Brownley (CA-26), Ranking Member of the Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health, Congressman Mark Takano (CA-41), Ranking Member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and fellow committee members Chris Pappas (NH-01), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Morgan McGarvey (KY-03), Delia Ramirez (IL-03), Nikki Budzinski (IL-13), Tim Kennedy (NY-26), Maxine Dexter (OR-03), Herb Conaway, Jr. (NJ-03), and Kelly Morrison (MN-03) issued the following statement after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that it would terminate collective bargaining agreements for most VA bargaining-unit employees.
“While Secretary Collins tries to spin this horrific VA decision to terminate union contracts for most bargaining-unit VA employees, we see it for what it is – a politically motivated attack on VA employees’ rights, power, and autonomy. This administration is showing once again that it is anti-worker, anti-veteran, and anti-VA. They are outright violating the law to retaliate against workers and their unions who have dared exercise their First Amendment right to oppose this administration’s actions that harm workers. This administration fears unions because they know that there is strength and power in unions. At a time when VA employees are leaving the agency in droves due to the toxic work environment created by Secretary Collins, it is more important than ever that we work together to protect VA employees’ rights. We remain committed to ensuring VA employees have all the tools they need, including collective bargaining rights, to do their job and to improve the care and benefits veterans receive at VA. We stand with the hardworking union members who serve our nation’s veterans, and we call on Secretary Collins to end these naked political attacks at the expense of veterans and to support the fundamental American principle that Americans have the right to join unions and to collectively bargain. Violating that principle is unpatriotic.”
Source: United States House of Representatives – Julia Brownley (D-CA)
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Julia Brownley (CA-26), a member of the House Natural Resources Committee, joined Congressman Jared Huffman (CA-02), the Committee’s Ranking Member, and 11 Democratic colleagues in a letter demanding answers from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum over the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to rewrite American history by scrubbing national parks of accurate, inclusive, and science-based content.
The lawmakers raised concerns about widespread censorship stemming from Secretarial Order No. 3431 and Executive Order 14253, a directive issued by President Trump that aims to reshape the way historical narratives are presented on public lands to conform to a narrow ideological agenda.
“Rather than fostering unity, this directive… seeks to present a more sanitized, inaccurate, and potentially divisive view of our national story,” the lawmakers wrote. “These efforts have already led to the attempted erasure of stories, narratives, and historical events at units of the National Park System all over the country.”
The letter outlines a disturbing pattern of censorship: the removal of a Native history exhibit at Muir Woods, efforts to soften references to slavery at Independence National Historical Park, and suppression of LGBTQ+ narratives at Stonewall National Monument. Across the park system, materials have been flagged or removed – from Junior Ranger books discussing slavery to signage on climate science, air pollution, and Indigenous dispossession.
The lawmakers also criticized the administration’s simultaneous push to slash the National Park Service’s budget by nearly 30% – the largest cut in over a century – which would threaten thousands of jobs, gut preservation programs, and lead to the potential sale or transfer of smaller park units.
“This is just one example of a broader pattern and much larger problem,” the lawmakers continued. “Pressuring historical interpretation to conform to specific ideological standards threatens unbiased scholarship and public education… The freedom to learn the full scope of our history remains a fundamental part of our American heritage.”
The letter requests detailed documentation on all interpretation changes made under the order, the personnel involved, a review of changed or removed properties by each bureau, and a full accounting of public feedback.
“True patriotism involves confronting the nation’s past honestly, building unity, and promoting reconciliation through a shared commitment to equality and justice,” the lawmakers wrote. “The American people deserve answers, transparency, and a recommitment to preserving history, not rewriting it.”
In addition to Congresswoman Brownley and Congressman Huffman, the letter was also signed by Representatives Sarah Elfreth (D-MD), Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Joe Neguse (D-CO), Val Hoyle (D-OR), Maxine Dexter (D-OR), Melanie Stansbury (D-NM), Dave Min (D-CA), Emily Randall (D-WA), Seth Magaziner (D-RI), and Debbie Dingell (D-MI).
The Honorable Doug Burgum Secretary of the Interior U.S. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street NW Washington, DC 20240
Dear Secretary Burgum,
We write with deep concern regarding the implementation of Secretarial Order No. 3431(SO), issued on May 20, 2025, pursuant to President Trump’s Executive Order 14253, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” and its consistency with the National Park Service Centennial Act and the National Park Service’s management policies.
America is a nation where innovation and progress have long thrived—grounded, in no small part, in our willingness to confront and learn from the past. Rather than honoring that legacy, this directive seeks to rewrite history to present a propagandized, inaccurate version of our national story.
Even more troubling, as part of your directive to “review property for inappropriate content”, the administration has taken the alarming step of asking visitors to report “any signs or other information that are negative about either past or living Americans or that fail to emphasize the beauty, grandeur, and abundance of landscapes and other natural features.” These efforts have already resulted in the removal or alteration of stories, narratives, and historical events at National Park System units all over the country.
Recent reports indicate that the National Park Service has removed the exhibit “History Under Construction” from Muir Woods National Monument. This exhibit was installed in 2021 to provide visitors with a deeper understanding of the Coast Miwok and Southern Pomo people’s profound connection to the landscape. It challenged visitors to grapple with the colonial violence used to displace native tribes who stewarded the land for centuries and highlighted efforts by women’s organizations to save the forest in the early 20th century. Censoring content that reflects the site’s full historical legacy diminishes the richness of the visitor experience and undermines the National Park Service’s mission to present an accurate and complete account of the American story.
This is just one example of a broader pattern and much larger problem. The attack on history started earlier this year when the stories of transgender and queer Americans were erased and suppressed at Stonewall National Monument. Unfortunately, it did not end there. The SO explicitly promotes revisionist history at Independence National Historical Park, a site that symbolizes the founding ideals of the United States and preserves national and international icons of freedom and democracy, by downplaying the brutalities of slavery. At Castillo de San Marcos National Monument, efforts are underway to obscure references to the imprisonment of Native Americans inside the Spanish stone fortress.5 Reports also indicate that signage will omit anything deemed “negative” at Manzanar National Historic Site, one of the locations where Japanese American citizens were incarcerated during World War II.
The screening process and censorship also extend to bookstores and gift shops. Materials flagged across various park units include a Junior Ranger book addressing slavery, accounts of Navy-caused damage to Native lands in Guam, books about civil rights icons like Malcolm X and the Freedom Riders, and descriptions of the methods used to control enslaved people. To make matters worse, reports indicate that at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, the administration is set to review and possibly remove or alter signs that explain how climate change is driving sea-level rise—an existential threat to the area. Similarly, at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, officials are considering edits to an exhibit on the environmental consequences of air pollution.
The consequences of these actions are deeply troubling and threaten to undermine the integrity of the National Park System. Sites of remembrance like Sand Creek and Amache may no longer speak plainly about massacres of Native Americans or the large-scale internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. At Lowell National Historical Park, the struggles of immigrant laborers who fueled the Industrial Revolution may be softened or obscured. And at Selma-to-Montgomery National Historic Trail and César E. Chávez National Monument, the resilience, sacrifice, and complexity that define America’s ongoing fight for justice risk being censored. Units of the National Park System play a vital role in preserving and interpreting the full scope of our nation’s history. They offer opportunities not only to celebrate our nation’s achievements, but also to acknowledge and recognize the more difficult chapters of our past—so that we may continue to learn and move closer to realizing America’s founding ideals.
As a shared heritage for all Americans, national parks and monuments are entrusted to the National Park Service, which is responsible for preserving these sites and their full histories, including stories that may reveal moments of systemic injustice and suffering. Any attempt to reshape history must be approached with care and balance. A truthful account of the past must include not only moments of achievement, but also events and figures that are complex, painful, or difficult to face.
Congress passed the National Park Service Centennial Act on a broadly bipartisan basis in 2016. This ongoing effort to reframe history and science not only infringes on intellectual freedom and institutional integrity—it directly violates the Act’s clear directive that the National Park Service ensure “a broad program of the highest quality and interpretation and education” that reflects “current scientific and academic research, content, methods, and audience analysis.” Pressuring historical interpretation to conform to specific political or ideological preferences threatens unbiased scholarship and public education. Such interference weakens both the quality and credibility of what visitors encounter and clearly violates the spirit, if not the letter, of this law.
If we erase these stories, we don’t just alter historical interpretation—we compromise the public’s ability to understand who we are as a nation, how we got here, and what it means to be American. What’s left is not a fuller or more unifying account of our past, but one deprived of many stories of people who helped build, defend, and shape our nation. This concern is not ours alone. The response of the American Historical Association and the Organization of American Historians to the SO included these concerns:
“New policies that purge words, phrases, and content that some officials deem suspect on ideological grounds constitute a systemic campaign to distort, manipulate, and erase significant parts of the historical record. Recent directives insidiously prioritize narrow ideology over historical research, historical accuracy, and the actual experiences of Americans.”
“New policies that purge words, phrases, and content that some officials deem suspect on ideological grounds constitute a systemic campaign to distort, manipulate, and erase significant parts of the historical record. Recent directives insidiously prioritize narrow ideology over historical research, historical accuracy, and the actual experiences of Americans.”
The SO raises a fundamental question: What does it mean to be American? That question echoes throughout every corner of the National Park System, where every site preserves a piece of the answer. These places do more than mark land; they mark the moments that define who we are and who we aspire to become. Yet under the SO, that story is being rewritten in a way that is inconsistent with the core mission of many parks, the law and the agency’s own policies.
For example, Chapter 7.3.1.1 of the 2006 National Park Service Management Policies affirms that, “Parks will be managed as places to demonstrate the principles of science, to illustrate the national experience as history, to engage learners throughout their lifetimes, and to do these things while challenging visitors in exciting and motivating settings.” The policies also underscore the importance of remaining relevant in the 21st century by engaging a diverse public, reflecting on civic responsibility in a participatory democracy, and interpreting pressing contemporary issues, including the effects of climate change. All of these commitments now appear to be at risk.
We recognize the importance of presenting history in a way that fosters unity and pride. At the same time, it is vital to maintain a truthful and comprehensive account of our past, including its more difficult aspects. This balanced approach is essential to honoring the experiences of all Americans and preserving the educational mission of our public lands and institutions. True patriotism involves engaging with our nation’s history honestly, building unity not by erasing the past, but by acknowledging it and promoting reconciliation through a shared commitment to equality and justice. Erasing or glossing over elements of our history risks not only legal and regulatory conflicts but also undermines the trust and respect of communities whose stories are integral to our national narrative. The freedom to learn the full scope of our history remains a fundamental part of our American heritage.
The rewriting and whitewashing of history coincide with a devastating proposed budget that would decimate the National Park Service, slashing the operating budget by approximately $900 million, or 30%, the largest cut in more than a century. These cuts would severely impact historic preservation programs, natural resource initiatives, and staffing, threatening thousands of positions across the agency. The budget even considers transferring or selling off smaller park units—including national historic sites, national memorials, and other treasured historical resources that tell some of our most complex and dynamic histories. Taken together, these actions raise serious concerns about this administration’s stewardship of our national parks.
The SO also includes strict timelines. Each land management bureau was required to conduct a comprehensive review within 30 days to identify all public monuments, memorials, statues, markers, or similar properties that have been removed or modified since 2020 and submit a formal report within 60 days. The SO further directed the land management bureaus to conduct a thorough review of all properties within 90 days to ascertain the presence of any inappropriate content. Additionally, each bureau is required to facilitate the removal of all content deemed to “inappropriately disparage Americans” within 120 days.
As we approach the 90-day mark, the American people deserve to know how decisions are being made about the future of their national parks.
Pursuant to the Committee on Natural Resources’ jurisdiction under House Rules X.1(m) to conduct oversight and investigations of all matters relating to national parks, and as part of ongoing efforts to understand the administration’s approach to history and interpretation within the National Park Service, please provide the following documentation by August 20, 2025.
A detailed rationale for the ongoing efforts to rewrite history, including a reconciliation of the SO with Section 301 of the National Park Service Centennial Act and Chapter 7 of the National Park Service’s 2006 Management Policies;
All comments from the public to the Department of the Interior or any of its bureaus that were submitted between May 20, 2025 and the date of this letter regarding interpretation content;
Documents sufficient to show the criteria the Department of the Interior or its bureaus are using or will use to make decisions about interpretation content;
Documents sufficient to show the names and titles of all personnel involved in making decisions about interpretation content at any unit managed by the Department of the Interior or any of its bureaus;
Documents sufficient to show all changes in interpretation that have been made or are planned at any unit managed by the Department of the Interior or any of its bureaus;
Documents and supporting reference materials sufficient to show the justification for each change in interpretation that has been made or is planned at any unit managed by the Department of the Interior or any of its bureaus;
All communications about Secretarial Order 3431 and its implementation; and
All documents produced pursuant to Secretarial Order 3431.